The FUE hair transplant method is the state of the art when it comes to hair transplantation methods today. FUE stands for follicular unit extraction which means the hair follicle, including all the associated support structures, are removed individually for re-insertion into the balding area. This may only make sense to you, and it really does, but the reality is this method is fairly new and is a great advancement over the former method of hair transplantation.
Before fue hair transplants the two most common hair implantation methods were the plug method and the strip method. Both of these necessitated that actual removal of a portion of scalp in order to harvest the needed hair follicles. The plug method was the original hair transplantation method which dates from the 1950’s. The surgeon would actually remove a round plug of scalp with the associated hairs still attached. He, there were hardly any female surgeons at this time, would then make an incision in the scalp at the within the bald spot. He next would insert the plug into the new incision and suture it up. As you can picture in your mind this did not give a very good looking result. The plugs were usually place with bare scalp in between so they showed up like a sore thumb. The hairs then grew in every direction instead of matching the growth direction of the surrounding hairs. Most people said the results of the surgery looked worse than being bald.
The second form of classic hair transplantation is the strip method. With this procedure a strip of scalp is removed from the back of the head. Most men who suffer hair loss do so because of male pattern baldness. This medical condition causes hair loss on the top of the head but not at the back. This means the hairs found in the posterior section can be used to transplant into the balding area. Until the fue hair transplantation surgery was perfected this was the preferred method of hair implantation. The surgeon would remove the strip of scalp and then medical assistants would remove each individual hair follicular unit including the shaft, sebaceous glands, blood vessels and adventitial sheath. Each unit would be cleaned and prepared and then they would be given to the surgeon. The doctor would then make a small incision in the balding area of the scalp and implant the follicle unit into the incision. This method left a scar at the back of the which was fairly easy to cover up. But this procedure was still very invasive to the scalp and left a long period of recovery.
Now enter the Fue Hair Transplant method of hair restoration. Follicular unit extraction has now been shown to be much better than the previous methods. The surgeon now uses a specialized medical device to remove the follicular unit and then places the hair into the scalp through an incision that is less than 1 millimeter across. Usually, the procedure can be done in the doctor’s office within one afternoon. As far as recovery, there is very little pain and discomfort but what irritation there is goes away within two to four days.
Fue hair transplant costs usually range from $6 to $10 per hair graft depending on the clinic and the geographical location of the doctor. This may seem expensive but when you compare it to buying worthless hair treatments for the rest of your life it really isn’t all that bad. Hair transplant by the fue technique is far superior to any other method of hair restoration. Fue hair transplant surgery is definitely the Cadillac of the hair treatment crowd.