WHAT IS THE FUE HAIR TRANSPLANTATION?
The FUE method, which was applied for the first time with 1 mm diameter micromotors in Japan, is the abbreviation of “Follicular Unit Extraction”. The FUE method is a newer and the most preferred technique in which individual hair follicles are transplanted to a thinning or balding area from a donor site. It provides very satisfactory results in terms of hair transplantation. You are a very good candidate if you wish to keep your hair very short, if you healed poorly after previous procedures and if you wish to hide scars or achieve better results.
FUE is performed under a local anesthesia or sedation and does not require a hospital stay. Nowadays, FUE method is much more preferred because of the fact that it doesn’t leave a line scar on the neck as the scalp is not incised. It allows other body parts such as chest and beard hair to be used as donors. Besides, the recovery time is minimal and many patients can return to their work within 2-3 days of treatment.
WHAT ARE THE TYPES OF FUE HAIR TRANSPLANTATION?
Nowadays, Soft FUE, Micro FUE and Sapphire FUE are the most favored hair transplantation techniques.
The Micro FUE technique is a more advanced version of the manual FUE method. In this technique, hair follicles are extracted with micro-tip devices, the channels in which the hair follicles will be transplanted are opened using micro motors with a diameter of 0.6 – 0.9 millimeters.
The Soft FUE technique is performed under sedation. Therefore, the patient is relieved with anesthetic agents. As the patient does not feel pain, the procedure is carried out in a more comfortable way for both the patient and the specialist performing the procedure. The patient under sedation can talk during the procedure and is ensured to undergo the operation consciously.
HOW IS FUE HAIR TRANSPLANTATION PERFORMED?
Before starting the operation, local anesthesia or sedation is applied to the recipient area, where the hair follicles will be inserted and the donor area where the hair will be extracted. After local anesthesia, the micromotor tip is brought to the direction of the hair follicle to collect the hair follicle and the hair follicle is extracted from the donor area. After the graft is collected to the extent required, the hair transplantation process is performed again with the same device and method to the recipient area.
Each graft contains about 2-3 hair follicles. An average of 4 thousand – 4 thousand 500 grafts is enough for hair transplantation. For a permanent natural look, it is very important to transplant healthy hair follicles taking into account the direction and angle of hair growth. Although hair follicles extracted from the nape are used in general, beard and chest can also be used as a donor area. New hairs grow in the same color and character as the follicles collected belong to the patient,
The operation takes about of 6 to 8 hours. The duration of the operation may change depending on the factors such as the size of the recipient area and the number of grafts to be applied.
WHAT TO CONSIDER BEFORE AND AFTER FUE HAIR TRANSPLANTATION?
Before FUE hair transplantation, the patient is required to have clean hair. It is very important for the patient to avoid alcohol, cigarettes and heavy exercise, if possible, a few weeks before the surgery. Even if the hair transplanted in FUE hair transplantation falls out after a short time, the hair transplantation will last for a lifetime.
Keeping the head upright after the operation is important for the removal of edema in a shorter time. Maximum attention should be paid to the area where hair transplantation is done for the upcoming 2 weeks. It is recommended to use soft pillows to protect the transplanted and the donor area. Apart from the slight cuts with scissors, it is also necessary to avoid aggressive hair cuts.
Within the first three days following your hair transplant procedure, you should avoid touching the transplanted hairs. During the first month after the hair transplant surgery, you should avoid strenuous physical activity, direct sunlight, swimming and you should wait 48 hours before you wash your hair after your hair transplant procedure.
Following the operation, you can generally go back to work by keeping the head covered after resting at home for 3 days. However, you are recommended being off work 4-10 days, depending on your skin type and how fast your skin heals. You can expect new hair growth usually within 5 to 6 months following the procedure. In 12-18 months you will see the final result of your hair transplant operation. A hair transplant will last a lifetime because healthy hair follicles are transplanted into thinning or bald areas.
Hair transplantation should not be considered as a simple procedure. After-care instructions specified by your hair trasnsplant surgeon should be carefully carried out for the success of the operation.
WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF FUE HAIR TRANSPLANTATION?
FUE hair transplantation has many advantages compared to the previous methods.
- During Fue hair transplantation, the patient’s scalp is not incised. Thus, the problem of scarring is eliminated as the area where hair is transplanted is not sutured. Also, tissue healing occurs much faster and the risk of complications is minimized.
- The operation takes about 6 to 8 hours and performed under sedation.
- Beard and chest areas could be used as a donor as an alternative to the nape area.
- Since more frequent and regional transplantation can be performed comfortably, much better results are obtained in the FUE method.
- The risk of hair loss is also eliminated after hair transplantation. Because in the FUE method, healthy hair follicles that will be transplanted to the recipient area are extracted from the areas where there is no hair loss risk, such as the over the ears or back of the head.
- Recovery time is minimal and many patients can return to their work within 2-3 days of treatment.
