Learn more about our surgical hair replacement solutions
Follicular Unit Hair Grafts
Hair transplantation is essentially a two-part procedure.
Follicular Unit Hair Grafts
Hair transplantation is essentially a two-part procedure.
In the first part, hairs are taken from the donor region of your scalp, the back of the head where hairs are typically resistant to male pattern baldness. In the second part of the procedure, these hairs are transplanted into the balding areas.
The two leading methods of hair transplantation, Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE), and Follicular Unit Grafting (FUG) are essentially the same when it comes to the second part of the procedure. Where the two procedures differ is in their method of extracting donor hairs.
FUG, the most popular method, excises thin strips of hair from the donor region and then dissects these strips into grafts of individual follicular units containing one, two, three or four hairs. (By contrast, FUE extracts these individual grafts directly from the scalp, one at a time.) These hairs are then transplanted into tiny receptor sites in the balding areas.
The FUG procedure has some important advantages and disadvantages when compared to FUE. More hairs can be transplanted in a single session of FUG than in a session of FUE. If your hair restoration goal requires a very high number of grafts, you might require more sessions of FUE than you might if we used FUG. You might even just need the one session of FUG! Also, when compared to FUE, FUG is significantly less expensive.
FUG has a few disadvantages, however. Because it does require incisions, men who wear their hair very short (a crewcut, for example) might want to consider FUE instead. Also, because sutures are required to close the incisions in the donor area, recovery from FUG is slightly longer than from FUE.
To determine which method might be best for you, schedule a complimentary consultation with Dr. Charles. He will evaluate your hair loss, discuss your goals, and help you weigh the risks and benefits of your many options.
ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE
Dr. Charles is the first surgeon to bring the ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) procedure to Boca Raton, Florida and the Southeastern United States. The ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE is the latest technology in hair transplant surgery.
The ARTAS® procedure is a computer assisted, image-guided and doctor controlled robot for use with a FUE Hair Transplant. The ARTAS® System uses sophisticated imaging technology to map out the follicular units on your head. It then chooses the optimal grafts to extract with precision before quickly and carefully harvesting each individual follicular unit of one, two, three, or even four hairs.
Dr. Charles guides the ARTAS® through the entire FUE procedure before the grafts are removed and placed in the exact angle and pattern of your natural hair growth. The result is a natural looking head of hair with minimal downtime.
The advantages of the ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE:
• Increased precision of harvesting and survival of grafts
• Higher number of follicular units in one session
• Minimal downtime
• No linear scar
The ARTAS® procedure is FDA-cleared for light skinned and dark haired men. Therefore, men with light hair will be asked to dye their hair darker 3 days prior to their scheduled ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE procedure for optimum results.
After your ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE procedure, the donor region will be mostly healed after one week with improvement in the recipient area in as little as six to twelve months.
As a final consideration, you should be aware that not all patients are candidates for the ARTAS® Robotic Assisted FUE.
Principals of Hair Transplantation
Microscopic Follicular Unit Transplantation Is Transplantation That Uses Nature As A Guide!
How Hair Grows
Hair grows naturally on the scalp in clusters of 1, 2, 3, or 4 hairs. These naturally occurring groups are called FOLLICULAR UNITS (FU).
Charles Medical Group technicians separate hair follicles using high powered microscopes producing the highest yield of grafts possible and giving you the most hair density available during your procedure.
How We Replace Hair
- With Follicular Unit Transplantation, microscopes are used for precise and efficient dissection of the donor strip down to 1-, 2-, 3-, and 4-hair groupings, in preparation for hair transplant surgery.
- Each individual follicular unit is relocated to the thinning recipient site-one naturally occurring follicular unit at a time.
Donor Supply
The average donor area (hair on the side and back of the head) yields 4000-8000 follicular units that are available to be moved to the male pattern area. The patient’s hair density determines the exact number of donor hair available to be moved in consideration for a hair transplant.
Characteristics of the donor hair determine the effectiveness of the hair that is relocated to the male pattern area include:
- Color of hair
- Coarseness
- Wavy Pattern
- Density
Demand
The area of demand (male pattern area) consists of two halves- frontal and crown. Higher priority is placed on the frontal half because of its cosmetic significance and the limited donor area. If the frontal half is bald, or goes bald, it will require a range of 2000-5000 follicular units to be re-established during hair transplant surgery
The characteristics of the patient’s donor hair (density, color, coarseness and wave pattern) and goals for density will determine the exact number of follicular units transplanted.
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