FUE hair transplant

In this era where medical technology is more developed, many people who have problems with thinning hair and baldness due to genetics have started looking for surgical methods,  hair transplants to solve the problem of baldness. Or in some people who do not have problems with thinning hair but want to receive hair transplants to adjust the frame of their face to look more symmetrical, they are also interested in receiving hair transplants. The FUE hair transplant method is becoming more popular and is being talked about more. In this article, the doctor will take you to get to know various methods of  hair transplants along with the advantages and disadvantages of each method.

Currently,  hair transplant surgery according to the definition of The International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS) consists of 2 international methods: FUT and FUE. Both methods differ in the process of obtaining grafts from the back area (Donor site).

FUT Hair Transplant

FUT stands for Follicular unit transplantation. It is a hair transplant method that involves surgically removing a long piece of hair from the back of the scalp, called a strip, and then cutting it into small clumps called “grafts.” The grafts are then transplanted to the desired area. The grafts can be either short hair or long hair.

Advantages of FUT  Hair Transplant

• A large number of graphs are obtained, with a maximum of approximately 5000-8000 graphs.
• Suitable for people who do not want to cut their hair short, such as women.
• Suitable for people with advanced hair loss who have little hair left at the back.

Disadvantages of FUT Hair Transplant

• The scar will be a long line along the back of the hair, making it impossible to cut your hair short.
• Not suitable for occupations that require short haircuts all the time, such as soldiers, police officers, or people in uniform.
• Some people may develop hypertrophic scars/stretched scars, which can cause self-confidence issues.
• Severe complications can occur, such as deep nerve injury and severe scalp infections.

FUE hair transplant

FUE stands for Follicular unit extraction. It is a non-surgical hair transplant method. The hair roots are moved from the back using a small drill bit. Drill the hair roots at the nape of the neck and pull them out one clump at a time. Then, the grafts are planted in the desired areas. The characteristics of the grafts and the preparation of the area behind the FUE method can be divided into the following sub-processes:

• Shaven FUE Hair Transplant

  It is the process of moving hair roots one clump at a time by cutting the hair at the back in a large strip and drilling out the hair roots to create short stumps (short hair)

Advantages of Shaven FUE Hair Transplant

• The doctor can see the area behind with a wide angle, allowing the hair follicles to be drilled equally and uniformly, resulting in a more beautiful wound in the long run. Suitable for people who want to cut their hair short, such as military and police officers, and short-cut hairstyles.
• The shortest root extraction time compared to other FUE hair transplants.
• Get a large number of grafts, suitable for people who need more than 2000 grafts. Therefore, it is suitable for men who have a lot of hair loss and women who undergo hair transplantation for the purpose of adjusting the face frame, which often uses more than 2000 grafts.
• The highest density can be planted because the resulting grafts are short stumps, allowing them to be planted closer together. In addition, the direction can be determined more easily, resulting in a result that is dense and close to human hair density.
• Easier to clean after hair transplantation, reducing the rate of infection after hair transplantation.

 Disadvantages of Shaven FUE Hair Transplant

• Must cut hair short. In the case of men, the wound on the back will dry completely and the hair roots will start to grow to cover the wound on the back within 2 weeks. In the case of women, the hair clinic has a technique for cutting hair to hide the wound, making it invisible. You can live a normal life.

“Microstrip shaving  Cutting hair short in small rows is not recommended because in the long run, there will be white scars in many steps. When cutting hair short, you will see that the hair has disappeared in many steps, which limits the ability to cut hair short forever. In addition, it also limits the ability to transplant hair in the 2nd-3rd round in the future because the hair at the back (Donor site) has a large amount of hair roots moved in each step, making it more difficult to manage the remaining grafts for the next use. However, you can choose to use the Microstrip shaving method if you use no more than 600-800 grafts.” (Reference: Jae Hyun Park, Practical guide to hair transplantation)

• Non-shaven FUE hair transplant

It is the process of moving hair roots one clump at a time without cutting hair short. The resulting hair roots will be short stumps (short hair)

Advantages of Non-shaven FUE Hair Transplant

• Suitable for people who do not want to cut their hair short.
• Suitable for people who use a small number of graphs, not more than 2000 graphs.
• It can be planted with high density similar to Shave FUE because the resulting grafts are short stumps, allowing them to be planted closer together. In addition, the direction can be determined more easily, resulting in a result that is dense and close to human hair density.

Disadvantages of Non-shaven FUE Hair Transplant

• It is a more expensive hair transplant method than Shave FUE.
• It takes longer to perform than Shave FUE.
• Not suitable for people who need to use a large amount of hair roots.
• Since the back of the hair is not cut, the root canal procedure is more difficult, resulting in an uneven distribution of scars. Unlike the Shave FUE method, the doctor can see the entire hair follicle at a wide angle, allowing for better planning of the root canal.

• Long hair FUE hair transplant

It is the process of moving hair roots one clump at a time without cutting hair short. The resulting hair roots will be long hair.

Advantages of Long Hair FUE  Hair Transplant

• No need to cut hair. Suitable for people who cannot cut their hair short.
• The service recipient can immediately see the final result (Finished look), which creates satisfaction and increases the confidence of the service recipient quite a bit.
• Suitable for people who use a small number of grafts. Generally, it is recommended not to exceed 1,500 grafts, such as in cases of hair transplantation to slightly adjust the facial frame, cases of hair transplantation over a small area of scars.
• It is recommended to use Long hair FUE for eyebrow transplant because it shows the correct hair root curve. The result looks more great than Shave FUE eyebrow transplant.

Disadvantages of Long Hair FUE Hair Transplant

• It is the most expensive hair transplant method because it takes a long time and is difficult in every process.
• Not suitable for people who use a lot of graphs.
• It takes the longest time to perform, approximately 3 times longer than Shave FUE.
• The density obtained is the least compared to other FUE hair transplants. Therefore, if the survival rate of the grafts is even lower, the result after 1 year of long hair will look thinner and not as dense as human hair density.
• After-hair transplant care requires extreme caution as long hair grafts can become tangled and fall off during the first 3 days.
• After 2 weeks of hair transplantation, the transplanted hair grafts may experience hair loss or shock loss, just like other hair transplant methods.