Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is one of two primary methods of obtaining hair follicles, naturally occurring groups of one to four hairs, for hair transplantation. The other method is called strip harvesting.
At NK Skin Hair and Laser Centre Hair Transplantation is done by a team of experienced Plastic Surgeon, Anaesthetist and Dermatologist. The centre has one of the finest and sterile fully equipped 400sq feet Operation Theatre.
Simply put, a hair transplant takes hair you have and transfers it to an area where you don’t have hair. It’s typically taken from the back of your head, but can also be taken from other parts of your body.
Before starting a transplant, your surgeon sterilizes the area where the hair will be removed and numbs it with a local anesthetic. You can also request sedation in order to stay asleep for the procedure.
FUT is sometimes known as follicular unit strip surgery (FUSS). To perform a FUT procedure, your surgeon follows these steps:
- Using a scalpel, the surgeon removes a piece of your scalp, usually from the back of your head. The strip size is typically about 6 to 10 inches long but can stretch from ear to ear.
- They close the area where the scalp was removed with stitches.
- Your surgeon and their assistants separate the scalp strip into smaller pieces with a scalpel. They may split the piece up into as many as 2,000 smaller fragments, called grafts. Some of these grafts may contain only one hair each.
- Using a needle or blade, the surgeon makes small holes in your scalp where hair will be transplanted.
- The surgeon inserts hairs from the removed piece of scalp into the puncture holes. This step is called grafting.
- They then cover the surgical sites with bandages or gauze.
The specific number of grafts you receive depends on the:
- type of hair you have
- size of transplant site
- quality (including thickness) of hair
- hair color
