Hair restoration doesn’t start with surgery. Your doctor will discuss several options to consider and try before you start talking about hair restoration surgery. While other options may help with hair restoration by treating issues leading to hair loss and promoting hair growth, hair restoration surgery uses your hair follicles to move hair follicles from one part of your body to another.
Hair replacement surgery is primarily accomplished in two ways. Which type of transplant is best for you involves a discussion with your doctor, but it helps to understand the basics of each and how the differences will impact your healing and your final results. Your doctor can help you determine which will achieve the most natural and healthy results.
What Is Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT)?
Follicular Unit Transplant, sometimes abbreviated as FUT, is the evolution of the oldest form of hair transplant. The first hair transplants, dating back to 1939 in Japan, took a strip of hair-covered skin from another part of your body, usually the back of the head, and transplanted it into the bald spot.
These early transplants weren’t great looking, so doctors improved the process over time. Doctors still remove a section of hair-covered skin with a Follicular Unit Transplant, but then a technician removes the individual hair follicles from the skin. Each strand is then implanted in the area where you are balding in a pattern designed to look natural.
Because each hair follicle is inserted individually, the surgery often takes four to eight hours. Most people see new hair growth six to nine months later as the transplants heal into their new location and then go through a normal hair growth cycle. Some doctors call this process follicular unit strip surgery (FUSS) or the generic term microscopic follicular unit transplant. A microscopic follicular unit transplant can be used interchangeably to mean either follicular unit transplant (FUT) or follicular unit extraction (FUE).
What is Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE)?
Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is the most common and newest form of hair restoration surgery. Still, it is more expensive and a more extended surgery than a follicular unit transplant because it transplants hair follicle by follicle. This hair restoration is gaining popularity because it cuts down the healing time, doesn’t leave a visible scar, and can harvest hair follicles from anywhere on the body.
With a follicular unit transplant surgery, the site where the skin is harvested to get the hair follicles usually has a linear scar. The removal site is often painful and usually takes
weeks to heal.
When a surgeon and patient opt for follicular unit extraction, each hair follicle used in the transplant is extracted individually. Because each hair follicle is transplanted separately, the process can take several hours of surgery or be done in two shorter sessions. Hair can be harvested from a patient’s beard or other body parts, often reducing the discomfort associated with the process.
As with follicular unit transplant hair restoration, the transplanted hair will usually fall out in the weeks following the transplant, with new hair growth following a couple of months. Because the transplant is done follicle by follicle, it can produce the most natural results.
BayMed Hair and Aesthetics Helps You Get Your Confidence Back
If you are experiencing hair loss, contact BayMed Hair and Aesthetics for a complete hair and scalp analysis. By setting up a consultation, you are taking the first step toward proper hair restoration and beginning a journey to a better life. To get started on your hair restoration journey, call us today.
