Revolutionary: the minimally-invasive Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE)
In the hands of a follicle transplantation specialist, Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is a truly revolutionary hair surgery method. Not only does the result in the transplanted areas look completely natural, even on close inspection, but no traces are visible in the area where the hair was removed. Scar tissue formation is both minimal and invisible to the naked eye.
In a micro-surgically sterile environment, the hair follicles to be transplanted are carefully loosened and freed one at a time from the horseshoe-shaped fringe of hair tissue with the aid of a fine hollow needle 0.75 - 0.8 mm in diameter. For practical reasons, we have to trim the area where the hair follicles are being harvested, this is unfortunately unavoidable.
The procedure occurs without a scalpel or sutures. Bleeding during the entire treatment is very rare, and the recovery phase is remarkably short, only a few days.
Therefore it is no wonder that a 'hype' has emerged around this still very new treatment method. Correct implementation (with hollow needles of 0,75-0,8-mm) not only requires outstanding fine motor skills and many years of micro- surgical experience on the part of the doctor, but a good deal of patience as well. Daily routine is an absolute must in order to attain outstanding results. In the hands of a physician who only occasionally carries out the FUE technique this usually leads to very poor results. The hair follicles removed from the hair fringe are extremely delicate anatomical structures surrounded by very little protective supportive tissue, and are therefore quite susceptible to damage.
Implanting the extracted Follicular Unit Grafts occurs - as in the traditional Strip transplant method - under local anaesthesia. Dr. Heitmann first uses microsurgical instruments to create incredibly tiny openings in the balding areas in which the new hairs are to be inserted, and subsequently fills them with Follicular Unit Grafts with the highest degree of care and precision. In this regard, we also consider it a necessity to shave the recipient area prior to the treatment.
The recipient sites are extremely small incisions whose surface area is barely measurable. The length and depth of these incisions are exactly large enough so that the extracted Follicular Unit Grafts fit perfectly.
The use of very tiny instruments completely avoids visible scars and keeps potential temporary lack of blood supply of the scalp to an absolute minimum. This way we regularly succeed in achieving hair densities of up to 70 follicular units per cm² in a single session.
This is known as Dense Packing. It is obviously not feasible for all of the recipient area, but is especially used in the frontal area behind the hairline. This One-Pass-Result means that a second procedure to make the hair even denser is then usually unnecessary.
The angle of each incision must however, follow the direction in which the original hair grew. Even in bald areas this can be identified by the remaining short downy hairs.
The FUE technique is very precise and necessitates a long treatment session.
Experience has convinced Dr. Heitmann that only 750 - 1000 follicular units can be transplanted with this method in a professionally acceptable way during a single treatment. Just as with the traditional strip transplant, this treatment (the extraction phase and implantation) is carried out under local anaesthesia and usually takes 8 to 10 hours.
The recovery phase is so short that the treatment can be continued without problems for up to three days in a row. After 4 to 6 months, a further block of treatments can follow as long as there is still enough hair in the donor area.
The following may serve as an example for a major procedure of up to 5.000 Grafts (about 10.000 hairs).
1st day of treatment up to 1000 Grafts
2nd day of treatment up to 1000 Grafts (Σ 2000 Grafts)
3rd day of treatment 500 Grafts (Σ 2500 Grafts)
After 4 - 6 months:
4th day of treatment up to 1000 Grafts (Σ 3500 Grafts)
5th day of treatment up to 1000 Grafts (Σ 4500 Grafts)
6th day of treatment 500 Grafts (Σ 5000 Grafts)
In some cases up to 10.000 follicle transplants or 20.000 hairs are needed for optimal results. Then a third and possibly fourth block of three treatments would be necessary, providing the donor hair area allows this to take place in this particular case.
To summarize this again point-by-point, Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) provides the following fundamental advantages when compared to the traditional Strip transplant:
- a scalpel free procedure
- free of surgical stitches or clamps
- no real bleeding to speak of
- very short recuperation phase with much less pain
- no visible scarring (in either the receptor and donor area)
- a short hair style after the treatment is possible
- use of your own body hair is possible
- correction of traditional strip scars is possible
What needs to be taken into account before the treatment?
What should you expect after the treatment?
What needs to be taken into account after the treatment?
