14 October 2024
Hair transplant methods

Hair transplant methods

Hair transplant methods. Nowadays, many appearance problems can be solved quickly and painlessly with the help of modern medical technology. Today it is no longer a luxury, but an elementary concern for image. Hair transplantation is one of the procedures aimed at improving quality of life. The first surgical methods of combating baldness were quite difficult: the practice was to transplant whole patches of skin from the donor area or even remove the hairless area with subsequent suturing of the skin edges. Modern surgery generally focuses on reducing the trauma, i.e. minimally invasive, so now hair transplant methods are used, after which there is no long recovery.

FUT hair transplantation method

FUT, or follicular unit transplantation. A flap of skin is removed from the donor area at the back of the head (an area genetically resistant to baldness) and divided into small fragments i.e. grafts, each containing 1-6 hair follicles. The smallest areas are transplanted along the hairline to make the hair look as even and natural as possible. Larger implants, 4-6 follicles each, are used to create the hairline. The grafts are implanted with tweezers in prepared incisions in the skin made with a scalpel. FUT hair transplantation is primarily effective in androgenetic alopecia, the male pattern baldness type.

It is a quick and convenient method for the surgeon, which has a number of significant drawbacks for the patient. First of all, it is very traumatic for the patient. In addition, the scar will remain in the donor area, it will take at least two to four weeks after the procedure to heal. Swelling, prolonged numbness of the skin, and the development of infection are possible. When installing donor material in the graft area, the natural angle of the hair and natural density cannot always be ensured. If possible, this technique can achieve 25-40 hairs per cm2, while the natural density is 80-120 hairs per 1 cm2. For these reasons, the FUT method is now rarely used and is considered obsolete.

Hair transplantation method – FUE

FUE, or follicular unit extraction or autologous micro-transplantation of hair follicles. This method is less traumatic than the FUT method. Clumps of hair containing 1-6 follicles are removed from the donor area. This is done with a special tool. As a result, small scars of about 1.5-5 mm in diameter remain in the donor zone. They heal faster than the large scar from the strip method. The removed follicles are divided into grafts and cleaned. The density of cultured hair is 40-60 units per cm2. In the case of the FUE method, it is very important that the follicles are implanted at the correct distances and angles, so that the regrowing hair looks natural and consistent throughout the head.

Hair transplantation method – HFE

HFE (manual removal of hair follicles). Another variation of the follicular unit extraction method, but a manual subsection, which is hair transplantation without the use of rotor mechanisms and is a completely non-surgical technology, as only micro-needle tools are used to remove and embed the hair. Follicles or follicular associations (containing 1-2, rarely 3 follicles) are manually removed from the donor zone with a micro-needle (0.5-1 mm), which are placed in the graft zone with a more advanced medical micro-device, i.e. an implant at a given depth and angle. No incisions are required.

The donor zone and the transplant zone first show traces of micropuncture, such as from an injection, which completely disappear after a few days. The advantage of this method is that it is minimally invasive, and therefore quick healing and short rehabilitation. The new hairstyle impresses with the natural angle of growing hair and natural density (80-120 hairs per cm2), as the survival rate of transplanted follicles is quite high – up to 90-98%. The relative disadvantage of the method is only its duration (on average, the procedure takes from 2 to 12 hours). But there is an advantage in that within one day practically the entire required volume is transplanted.

As for cost, the price is generally comparable to FUE, but the result is much better. Keep in mind that HFE requires work like handmade jewelry, which can only be ensured by the experience and high qualifications of the doctor. It is a patented technology that requires special tools, so transplantation does not take place everywhere. As a rule, 1,500-3,000 grafts are needed for surgical procedures. When transplanting with the HFE method, multiple procedures are possible to increase hair density, which cannot be said of other methods

Whichever method you choose, it is very important that the procedure is carried out correctly. Much also depends on the patient: before and after the transplant, strictly follow the doctor’s instructions. The use of hair growth promoting agents after the transplant is possible only after consultation with your doctor. One must remember that the transplanted hair will be sensitive to any influences.