Arsenal star Rob Holding has told how he restored his confidence and improved his appearance after having a hair transplant.
Central defender Holding, 26, who scored in the victory against West Ham last weekend, said he had struggled with his mental health in previous years after going bald in his early 20s.
He said: “I struggled so much with my hair and self-confidence. I am so happy with the results.”
Holding was the target of a some light-hearted jokes by his team-mates about his hair transplant after the West Ham game in which he scored his first goal in the Premiership.
Goal-keeper Aaron Ramsdale, interviewed alongside Holding, said: “It’s only taken six years (for his first goal) and a new hairline.”
Holding will have almost certainly had an FUE (follicular unit transplant) – chosen by 80% of the patients at Crown Clinic.
With FUE, the donor grafts are extracted individually from the back and sides of the scalp, limiting any scarring.
Most of our consultant surgeon Dr Asim Shahmalak’s patients opt for FUE, including Jack P Shepherd from Coronation Street and the model Calum Best.
Dr Shahmalak also offers the more traditional method of hair transplantation, called FUT ( follicular unit transplantation).
With FUT, the donor hair is removed all in one go by surgically cutting a strip of skin from the back of the scalp. The donor grafts are then extracted from the strip by skilled technicians and they are replanted in the balding areas by Dr Shahmalak.
Because FUT is less labour intensive than FUE, it is slightly cheaper.
The TV doctor Christian Jessen had two FUE transplants with Dr Shahmalak at Crown Clinic.