Repair hair transplantation is one of the most demanding subspecialties in hair restoration surgery. Patients presenting for repair have typically had one or more previous procedures that produced unsatisfactory results, pluggy hairlines from older techniques, overharvested donor areas, visible FUT scars, or unnatural hairline designs. The corrective procedures require different planning than primary transplantation and produce more variable outcomes.

Common repair scenarios include: extraction and redistribution of pluggy grafts using FUE to dilute their appearance, addition of single-hair grafts at the leading edge of older multi-hair grafts, hairline redesign with grafts positioned to soften unnaturally hard original lines, donor area scar revision (FUE through linear scars or scalp micropigmentation camouflage), and addressing pitting or cobblestoning from poorly placed recipient sites.

Patient expectations require careful management for repair cases. The original work cannot always be fully reversed, some changes are permanent. Realistic improvement is typically a 60–80% improvement in cosmetic appearance rather than complete elimination of past surgical evidence. Repair surgery often requires multiple staged procedures over 2–3 years. Patient selection of repair surgeons should prioritise experience with corrective work specifically, primary transplant skill doesn't fully translate to repair expertise.