Thousands of people have a section of their hair that grows at a different angle, making it difficult to style or creating the impression of an uneven, messy hairline or crown. Hair transplantation is one of several solutions to fix a cowlick, ideal if you feel that it impacts your appearance or have signs of hair loss or uneven growth around the area.
While a cowlick isn’t necessarily always connected to hair loss, the break in your hairline, often across your forehead, may look comparable to a receding hairline or a widow’s peak, depending on where the cowlick is and the severity of the irregular growth.
KSL Clinic offers a complete range of hair transplant procedures, creating flawless, natural and permanent results. Our expert hair transplant surgeons and technicians can assess your hairline, recommend the right method to correct a cowlick, and discuss your perfect hairline to create a bespoke transplantation plan.
Key Takeaways
- Hair transplantation can permanently correct a cowlick by carefully repositioning your own follicles to create a seamless, straight and youthful hairline.
- Cowlicks are a common deviation that appears in the hairline or crown. They occur when a section of hair grows in a different pattern or direction than the rest of the hair.
- Although cowlicks are often hereditary and normally present from birth, an uneven hairline can negatively impact your self-confidence, how you style your hair, and how your hairline frames your face.
Using Hair Transplantation to Correct a Cowlick
Cowlicks are so-called because they look similar to the pattern seen in calf’s hair when they are licked by their mothers. While the name might be cute, we often speak with patients who have struggled with a lack of confidence for years or feel that their cowlick makes it impossible to look professional and polished.
Researchers have also found that cowlicks or noticeable hair whorls are linked with some genetic conditions, such as neurofibromatosis,[1] which commonly presents as irregular patches of skin that appear lighter or darker.
Because the hair grows in an unruly pattern, often against the direction of growth of the rest of your hair, styling products have a limited effect. Cowlick hair is also typically stubborn, so clipping or gelling the hair in the desired place usually works only temporarily.
The first step is to consult one of KSL Clinic’s experienced transplant specialists since every cowlick differs. You may, for instance, have a large patch of hair that grows in a swirling, circular pattern that requires a higher number of follicle grafts or have a smaller area of hair around your hairline that points upward or downward.
If you are happy with your cowlick, there is no pressing need to consider hair transplantation. However, if your hair growth creates an uneven, jagged hairline that is highly visible or affects your confidence, a hair transplant can make a tremendous difference by addressing the root cause.
How a Hair Transplant Works to Correct a Cowlick
KSL Clinic provides patients with customised, private recommendations about the best procedures or treatments to manage their hair growth issues, be they:
- A receding hairline or widow’s peak
- Patches of hair loss
- Hereditary or genetic hair loss conditions
- Uneven or unwanted natural growth patterns
Following a private consultation, we’ll provide our suggestions, with FUE hair transplants being one of the highest-demand services. The process takes just a few hours, is pain-free, and uses your own healthy hair to create a new pattern of hair growth that can transform a cowlick.
Each individual follicle is extracted from a selected donor area using a precise instrument that leaves no scarring, with each donor extraction site measuring under one mm across. Those follicles are then repositioned in the required location, with the follicles graded and placed in the desired direction of growth.
We often think of hair transplants as solely aimed at helping people with hair loss, but our innovative techniques can be used in countless ways to augment your appearance, achieve your ideal look and correct aspects of hair growth that you dislike.
Free consultation
Looking to fix a cowslick? Book a free consultation with us today to see what we can do for you.
Benefits of Using Hair Transplantation for a Cowlick
There are various theories behind why some people have a natural cowlick and others don’t, and studies have linked uneven hair patterns and swirl to left and right-handedness. If older generations in your family have a cowlick, you are more likely to have one, although this isn’t always the case.[2]
Deciding whether to correct a cowlick or leave it as-is is entirely a matter of personal choice. A transplant is the only effective, long-term solution that can redistribute the troublesome follicles and design a uniform, attractive hairline based on your expectations.
If you’ve been battling with a cowlick for some years, you will find that a minimally invasive, walk-in/walk-out hair transplant offers a number of compelling benefits:
- Effective removal of a cowlick: Hair transplants redistribute your own hair follicles, ensuring you can design your perfect hairline without the ongoing need to use hair styling products or headwear to cover the offending area.
- Natural, scar-free results: Our surgeons use your own healthy follicles, implanting them in a preconfigured pattern. The regrowth from the hair transplant is completely natural, with no variations in hair texture or colour, scarring, or outward signs that you have had a hair transplant.
- Advanced hair transplant techniques have evolved considerably in recent years, meaning we can complete a pain-free hair transplant in just a few hours, with initial healing requiring just a couple of weeks.
Of course, we’d always advise you to consult with a skilled, knowledgeable hair transplant surgeon before making any decisions. While a hair transplant is a fantastic way to correct a cowlick once and for all, you’ll also need to follow aftercare guidance for the first two weeks to ensure the newly implanted follicles are protected.
We offer all patients a free consultation where we can discuss your aspirations, the hair transplant process, and costs to ensure you make informed decisions about the right way forward.
Understanding the Hair Transplant Procedure to Correct a Cowlick
As we’ve indicated, KSL Clinic offers a variety of treatments and hair transplants, and the right solution may depend on the position and nature of your cowlick, as well as the results you’d like to achieve. Everybody’s hair and growth patterns are different, so the options could be influenced by:
- Additional or secondary issues such as areas of slow or patchy hair growth, locations where you are experiencing hair loss, and the suitability of donor hair follicles.
- Your expectations – whether you’d like to remove a cowlick entirely, use a light-touch transplant to reposition hair growth around the cowlick, or reconfigure the appearance of your entire hairline.
- Any underlying issues that are affecting your hair. If a cowlick is receding or you have seen hair loss on either side of the cowlick, this may enhance its visibility and impact your self-confidence.
There is no one-size-fits-all approach to hair transplantation. You could have a hair transplant that conceals the noticeable nature of a cowlick, redistributes the follicles growing in an unwanted pattern, or opt for a full hairline transplant.
Each option provides a permanent fix and can ensure your hair is easier to manage and style – our advice is always to speak with an experienced hair transplant expert to review their recommendations and see which options feel the best fit for your requirements.
“Cowlick hair transplants should be adapted to each individual’s wishes and aspirations – each procedure requires in-depth planning, beginning with a discreet consultation where we can offer insights into the outcomes possible with a hair transplant.
Mapping out each follicle for extraction, implantation, or redistribution is key. This allows us to accurately see how the healed transplant will look and ensure that this is exactly what the client is looking for.”
The Results Achievable With a Cowlick Hair Transplant
Our most common requests related to cowlicks are to create a hairline that blends seamlessly with the rest of the hair, with no discernible change in the shape or pattern of hair growth. Patients often ask for the following:
- A symmetrical, even and full hairline
- Transplants to correct areas of hair loss and conceal a cowlick
- Corrective transplantation to address patches of hair with a different texture
Cowlicks most typically appear to the front of your hairline above your eyes, which is why so many people feel that this type of hair growth affects their appearance – cowlicks can, though appear at any other position on your head.
The hair transplant we suggest may, therefore, differ based on the location of your cowlick, the size of the area of growth affected, and the outcomes you’d like to achieve.
During your consultation, we’ll be happy to discuss all of these factors, show you previous patients results and appraise the characteristics and nature of your cowlick to put together a comprehensive hair transplant strategy.
If you’d like to learn more about using a hair transplant to fix a cowlick or to chat with our skilled hair transplant surgeons about your concerns, please get in touch at any time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Hair Transplant Permanently Remove a Cowlick?
Yes, a personalised hair transplant procedure can involve the redistribution of hairs that are growing in an uneven pattern or extract healthy follicles from other areas, usually to the back of your scalp, to create a fuller, more natural hairline to minimise the visibility of your cowlick.
Unfortunately, many alternatives, such as styling products, offer a temporary solution, and training your hair to grow in the desired way is impossible. If you dislike your cowlick, find that your hair growth affects your confidence, or would like to reconfigure your hairline, a hair transplant is a long-term solution.
How Long Does Recovery Take After a Cowlick Hair Transplant?
Aftercare and recovery are key to a successful hair transplant, and we offer ongoing support and reviews to ensure your transplant is regrowing nicely and that you are delighted with the results.
Our earlier guide to week-by-week hair transplant growth stages provides greater detail about the recovery timeline, and we’d advise scheduling your hair transplant during a period when you can rest and relax as much as possible for the first 14 days.
Once your newly implanted follicles have settled, you can return to your usual hair styling regime, wash your hair normally, and participate in activities like swimming and exercising as you wish.
Is a Cowlick Hair Transplant Suitable for a Receding Hairline?
Absolutely – some people opt to correct a cowlick to boost their self-esteem, but we also speak with clients who have found that hair loss or a receding hairline highlights their cowlick or makes a small cowlick far more noticeable than when surrounded by healthy hair growth.
Advanced hair loss can exacerbate the visible nature of an unwanted pattern of hair, where the more hair you lose, the more your cowlick might stand out. We can offer bespoke hair transplants to correct a cowlick, replenish areas of hair loss, or reconfigure your entire hairline.
Can a Cowlick Hair Transplant Improve My Appearance?
Aesthetics are always personal, and while some people might like the quirky and unusual nature of a cowlick, others perceive that a cowlick means their hair always looks untidy and unruly or negatively impacts their facial characteristics.
A similar scenario applies to other variations in hair growth. While many people believe that a widow’s peak or receding hairline is detrimental to their appearance, others might consider these hair growth patterns elegant or attractive.
Cowlick hair transplants are carefully planned and mapped based on a thorough analysis of your individual hair. Each follicle is graded and assessed to ensure it is positioned in the correct place to generate healthy, thick hair growth in an even, symmetrical pattern.
If you dislike your cowlick or feel that the angle of growth doesn’t suit your facial features, a hair transplant can correct this and redesign a hairline you are satisfied with.
What Is the Main Cause of a Cowlick?
Cowlicks are tufts or patches of hair that grow in a different direction from the rest of your hair. You might have a swirl or whorl pattern along part of your hairline or find that you cannot part your hair the way you would like since some of your hair grows the opposite way.
While most cowlicks are hereditary and harmless, they are more common in clients with certain genetic conditions – most of which affect skin and hair growth and colour.
