Early healing
Month 1 of 18
Day 5 after a hair transplant: Crusts and itching
The grafted area is covered in small crusts and the itch can be strong. That's dried blood and skin healing around each graft. Keep washing as your clinic says; it slowly softens the crusts so they come away on their own.
What you can do now
On day 5
What's typical
- Crusts on the grafted area
- Itching in both areas
- Less swelling
Call your clinic if you notice
- Fever, pus, a bad smell, or redness and warmth that spread.
- Grey, purple or black patches bigger than the small crusts around each graft.
- Pain that gets worse each day instead of easing.
In the GraftKeeper app, Check a symptom walks you through what to do.
Not yet reviewed by a doctor — verify with your clinic.
Sources
- Hair transplantNHS, 2023
- A hair transplant can give you permanent, natural-looking resultsAmerican Academy of Dermatology, 2026
- Hair transplantation surgeryIndian Journal of Plastic Surgery, 2008
- Complications in Hair TransplantationJournal of Cutaneous and Aesthetic Surgery, 2018