Will The Bicoronal Scar From My Recent Forehead Contouring Procedure Grow Hair Through It So It Is Less Visible?

Q: Dr. Eppley, I underwent a cosmetic surgical procedure roughly 2 months ago. It was a forehead contouring surgery to reduce the prominence of my forehead and eliminate the “bony horns” to give it a smoother and less bulging appearance. Since I am a male, it was decided to go with a bicoronal incision from ear to ear instead of a hairline incision just in case if I experience a receding hairline down the road. They used the trichophytic suturing technique so that way my hair can grow back through the incisions and it would be virtually unnoticeable. Well, as I stated it’s been about 2 months and there are still patches of the scar where I see no or very limited hair growth and when you look at my head from the side, you can see a clear line in my hair where the scar is. I attached some pictures and was wondering if you can give me some feed back and tell me what you think.

A: I am not exactly sure what commentary you are seeking. To perform that forehead procedure I would have never used a bicoronal incision in a male as that is exactly the scar outcome I would have expected.  Bicoronal incisions notoriously become visible in the temporal regions no matter what technique is used to close them. They do much better across the top of the head between the temporal lines but always widen below that line on the sides of the head. (and hair is not going to grow through the scar) That is why a much more anteriorly based scalp incision that does not go below that line is always a better scar risk. At some point scar revision is in your future for any improvement in its appearance.

Dr. Barry Eppley

Indianapolis, Indiana