Washing hair soon after brain surgery looked safe
Original title: Evaluating the Benefits of Minimal Shaving and Early Hair Shampooing After Craniotomy in Brain Tumor Patients.
How far along is this research?
- Lab cells
- Animals
- Review
- Tested in people
This was tested in people. That is the most reliable kind of research we share.
This was a look back at real patients' records, not a planned test of the idea.
The short version
People who washed their hair a day or two after brain surgery had no wound infections.
What was studied. Doctors reviewed records from 575 people who had surgery for a brain tumor. 178 of them had less hair shaved and washed it within 24 to 48 hours after surgery.
What they found. No one in the hair washing group got a wound infection. In the group that did not wash early, 10 people (2.5%) did get one. The people who washed early rated their wound care 9.36 out of 10 on average.
What this means, and what it doesn't
What it could mean: Washing your hair soon after brain surgery may be safe. Many patients also liked it. Ask your surgery team what is right for your wound.
What it doesn't mean: This does not prove that early washing stops infections. The two groups were not the same to start with. The people who washed early were older, and more of them had cancer. Doctors looked back at old records instead of running a planned trial. This is about comfort and wound care. It does not treat the tumor and it is not a cure.
Source: PubMed, October 1, 2026 · Read the original
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