• ABOUT HAIRLOSS

• Micrografting
• Repair Work

Going bald may be inevitable...

Male pattern baldness affects almost 70% of North American men. Extensive medical research has identified the cause - an enzyme imbalance that gradually stops hair growth on the top and front of the scalp. The timing and degree of baldness are determined by genetics, hormones and age.

...staying bald doesn't have to be!

Fortunately, the hair at the back and sides of the scalp are resistant to the balding process and genetically programmed to grow for life. This provides the basis for an effective solution - hair transplantation employing revolutionary micrografting techniques.

The Science...

Modern hair restoration technology makes it possible to transplant permanently growing hair from the back and sides of the scalp to areas that are thinning or balding. Dr. Sheps uses state-of-the-art micrografting techniques that are proven safe and effective. The newly transplanted hair is genetically programmed to keep growing, making this an investment that will last a lifetime. Over the long term the procedure costs less and is significantly more effective and natural than drug therapy or hair pieces.

and The Art.

Hair transplantation is more than just a science, it's an art. Dr. Sheps combines experience and excellent surgical skills with a keen sense of aesthetics and a sharp eye. This enables him to create an undetectable, soft hairline which compliments the structure of your face. The result is a hairline that looks and feels natural.

Hair transplant surgery is becoming the most popular minor cosmetic surgery in Winnipeg, and Dr. Michael Sheps is the reason why. One of Canada’s most experienced hair transplant specialist, Dr. Sheps has been honing his craft for 20 years. With the doctor and his six-member team performing between 250 to 300 such surgeries per year, the Sheps Hair Transplant Clinic is among the busiest practices of its kind in Western Canada.

Approximately 70 per cent of North American men are affected by some aspect of male patter baldness, and many will agree that a healthy head of hair tops a healthy attitude. It can work wonders for self-confidence, whether in the boardroom or the living room. “A lot of my clients are just tired of looking in the mirror every morning and seeing a bald head,” says Dr. Sheps. “They want to look younger, feel younger, and just feel better about themselves. Now medical people always talk about the psychological well-being interrelating with the physical well-being. If you feel good about yourself, that enables you to enjoy better physical health.”

A certified dermatologist (in both Canada and the U.S.) and a charter member of The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgeons, Dr. Sheps has devoted more than 20 years to both the science and the art of hair restoration. The Winnipeg doctor first studied the procedure while studying dermatology in Toronto under Dr. Walter P. Unger, who has been performing such surgeries since 1967 and who is lauded as the leading hair transplant surgeon in North America.

Dr. Sheps continues to visit his mentor as a part of his devotion to keeping abreast of the latest surgical developments in the field. “I keep up with the latest and the best technology from the leading-edge surgeons in North America,” says Sheps.

Male pattern baldness occurs due to a hormone imbalance that gradually stops hair growth on the top and front of the scalp. While hormones and age play a part in the speed and spread of the balding process, the main cause is genetic. In those who are predisposed to male pattern baldness there is an enzyme within the follicle on the top and on the front of the scalp that causes miniaturization – the follicle shrinks until the hair it produces is virtually invisible. That enzyme does not invade the follicles on the back and the sides of the same scalp that continue to support healthy hair.

“So when you transplant those follicles, because they do not contain the ‘balding’ enzyme, they will continue to grow in the new area for a lifetime,” explains Dr. Sheps.

Via a sophisticated micro-grafting technique, follicles from those unaffected areas are transferred to the thinning or balding regions. This begins when Dr. Sheps and his team remove a ‘donor’ strip from the back or sides of the patient’s head. This strip is then dissected carefully into individual and multiple hair grafts. The recipient area is prepared with tiny incisions into which the donor hair grafts are inserted. Noting that the original hairline is nature’s way of framing the face, Dr. Sheps and his team reconstruct the hairline with excellent surgical skills, a keen sense of aesthetics and a sharp eye for complementing the structure of the face.

This relatively new approach, with results far more subtle than earlier transplants, has encouraged the growing popularity of hair transplant surgery. “Hair transplantation has actually been in North America since 1958,” explains Dr. Sheps. “It really took off in the early ‘90s, when the procedure evolved from the old ‘punch-graft’ system and converted to the new ‘micro-graft’ system. Instead of the unnatural ‘pluggy’ look, one was able to produce a very natural-looking head of hair. We’re now doing little micro-grafts of one, two or three hairs instead of large punch-grafts, which averaged 15 hairs per graft, so you’re able to achieve a much more natural appearance.”

Most clients require two sessions, depending on the degree of baldness or thinning. In the first session the micro-grafts are distributed through the entire bald area. The second is devoted to creating density and “thickening” the look. Each session takes an average of three hours. Recuperation is quick, moreover; the thin scar in the donor area is camouflaged easily by the surrounding hair, while the scabs in the recipient area fade within 10 days.

Most patients at The Sheps Hair Transplant Clinic are men in the 30 to 55 age range, yet the office has seen clients as young as 18 and as advanced as 80. Not all clients are men, either. “Though most of our clients are men, we’ve also had women undergoing hair restoration surgery,” notes Dr. Sheps.