FUE Hair Transplant Procedure
Follicular unit extraction (or FUE) is the new up-to-date method that succeeds the older method called follicular unit transplantation (or FUT). It is a minimally invasive hair restoration procedure (when compared with FUT) that requires skill and precision in order to achieve the best and most natural looking results.
The main benefit is that there is NO scarring left when comparing it to a FUT (or strip) procedure, along with much less pain and better looking results. It is the “gold standard” method that has now been adopted by clinics worldwide.
How Does FUE Work?
The difference between FUE and FUT is found in the method of harvesting the hair from the donor area. Instead of excising a strip of hair, suturing the area together, and then dissecting the follicular units underneath a microscope, the follicular units in the FUE method are removed from the scalp in groups of naturally occuring 1-4 follicles (This is called a graft). Therefore, there is no wound to be stitched and there is no need for microscopes.
The follicular units are removed by placing a 1 mm punch around a single follicular unit and cutting a small circle through the skin around that follicular unit. The follicular unit is then grasped and gently pulled away from the loose connective tissue surrounding it underneath the skin.
Once it is removed, no further preparation is necessary. It is ready for implanting. The small hole left behind is left to heal in by itself which it does over one to two weeks. This process is repeated hundreds of times until the desired number of follicular units are obtained. Rather than having a white, linear scar as with standard follicular unit transplantation, the patient is left with numerous 1 mm round white scars.
Advantages of FUE
The main advantage that our clients notice is less noticeable scarring and no tightness of the scalp, because no tissue has been brought together and sutured when comparing it to the standard follicular unit transplantation or FUT method.
Another advantage is recovery time. Again, because the procedure is minimally invasive and there are no major cuts that require stitches to heal (like with the FUT method), the recovery time is very quick (typically completed within 6-7 days) as there are only some scabs that form around the newly implanted follicles. There is also minimal bleeding when comparing to FUT.
Conclusion
It is our opinion that standard follicular unit transplantation used to be useful, however the FUE technique (and the DHI technique, which is very similar to FUE) are far superior with a similar cost to FUT. So in essence, patients are getting better treatment, better results for the same price.