Surgical

Follicular Unit Excision (FUE)

FUE is the most common method of hair transplant.With FUE, hair grafts are individually extracted from the donor areas,typically each graftis a naturally occurring group of between 1 and 3 hair follicles, also known as a follicular unit. This method involves the transfer of healthy grafts obtained from the genetically stronger areas of the scalp (usually the back & sides of the head) to the recipient area withhair thinning.

Currently we can safely transplant up to 3,500 grafts in a single session (depending on the case and suitability of the donor area). This is typically done over one day, but sometimes is carried out over two consecutive days to achieve more effectiveresults.This duration may vary from one patient to another.

How FUE Works

Unlike FUTwhere the conventional strip excision method is used, FUE involves the extraction of individual follicular units/ grafts from the genetically healthier regions of the scalp and surgically inserting them into the patient’s thinning areas. Typically,removal of the graftswill leave subtle small round scars. These fine dotted scars will be covered once shaved hair regrows.

A lot of patients prefer this method because it has no cutting &stitching,therefore resulting in a quick recovery time with no visible linear scar. FUE is also accompanied by less discomfort to the areas worked on.This hair transplant process is very convenient as it leaves the donor region relatively intact with its natural appearance.

The professional services offered by Dr Saaed& his teamhelp youconfidently make an informed decision on what bests suits you and your needs for anoptimal surgical hair restorationsolution.Our Consultations are informative and accommodating, allowing you to navigate with your surgeon on what results you desire and what is practically achievable. It is important to know that results are limited to the particular hair bank each individual has. It is also vital that you let the doctor know of any conditions or disorders that you might be having to allow accurate assessment of any risk factors & ensure a successful transplant.

At a consultation you can use the opportunity to find out all the advantages and disadvantages of the procedure along with the possible outcomes and effects.

Feel free to contact us &find out more about which hair transplant procedure is best for you.

The FUE Process

This is a meticulous process that requires attention to detail for an effective final result. After consultations, here is how the procedure is carried out:

1. 1. Harvesting Hair Follicles:

   Small circular incisions are made around the hair follicles on the scalp at the donor area by using a small metal device called a punch,then these follicular unitsareindividually extracted from the donorarea. The new hair follicles are kept in an optimum environment and prepared by an experienced teamto be transplanted into the recipient area. This procedure is done with a lot of accuracy to avoid damage to the hair follicles.

2. 2. Recipient site preparation:

   Small blades or needles are then used to prepare the recipient area by creating incisions. Making these incisions requires ultimate precision as the direction of the natural hair growth is considered. This will allow all the transplanted grafts to grow in the standard expected directions resulting in the desired natural looking appearance.

3. 3. Transplanting the HairFollicles:

   Hair grafts are then transplanted one at a time at an angle of 40-45 degrees in to the incisions that were created during the recipient area preparation. Our experienced team at Fortes will check each individual graft before transplanting it into the recipient area to ensure that you get the best hair transplant result.

Summary of the FUE Procedure

Here’s a breakdown of the FUE procedure in bullet points:

• The first step is the consultation process, where the doctor and the patient agree on the best procedure to be carried out and a new hairline is designed. If you agree on the procedure that suits you the best, an appointment for surgery will be booked for you.
• If the treatment involves a significant number of grafts, we will have to shave the entire back and sides of the scalp on the day.
• A mild sedative and local anaesthetic will be administered in both the donor and recipient areas. This is the only discomfort you’ll feel throughout your treatment.
• Once the anaesthetic has kicked in, the procedure begins with the extraction of the follicular units / grafts. Manual or motorised extraction methods are used. Hair grafts are then extracted from the donor area at the back& sides of the head.
• The recipient area is then prepared, taking into consideration the direction of normal hair growth.
• The transplantation process then follows next as the hair grafts are inserted into the recipient area.
• Post-operative procedures such as wound dressing and cleaning are then carried out on the operated regions.

Aftercare for FUE

Finally, the last process is post-operative care as well as the hair washing procedure.The washing process is to be conducted for 2 weeks. This is to be done with a lot of care as the transplanted region is likely to be sensitive to touch and water. An Aftercare package is given to all patients that includes detailed post-op washing instructions.

The FUE procedure is relatively clean with a quick recovery time. FUE will leave subtle small round scars at the donor site. These fine dotted scars will be covered once the shaved hair regrows.

Often you can be on your way home only half an hour after the treatment, but make sure arrangements have been made for someone to collect you.

We pride ourselves on expert knowledge and meticulous detail in our technique, producing effective results that are natural-looking where surgery is virtually unnoticeable. Your hair is our Forte!

Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT)

Also known as the strip transplantation method, FUT is a surgical hair transplantation process that involves the excision of a thin strip from a safe donor area at the back of your scalp. The donor area is then closed by using stitches and the wound is covered by the surrounding hair. The stitches are removed after 10 to 14 days and the donor area healsleavening a linear scar.

The FUT method is ideal for patients suffering from advanced hair loss who require a large number of grafts that cannot be achieved by FUE method alone, or female patients who do not want to shave the donor area at the back of their head. Currently, we can transplant between 500 to 2500 grafts in one dayvia FUT and it takes between 4 – 10 hours to complete the procedure.

How FUT Works

The extraction process is performed in such a manner that a horizontal strip of hair-bearing skin is extracted from the donor area usually at the back and the sides of the scalp which contain several hair follicles. The strip tissue is then divided under the microscope by an experienced team into small grafts(follicular units)with 1-3 hair follicles in each graft. These grafts are then implanted into the recipient area.

While it is a remarkably effective process, the mainnoticeable drawback of FUT is that a linear scar will remain at the donor areaafterit has healed.

The FUT Transplant Process

Like all other hair transplant procedures at Fortes Clinic, we begin with a thorough consultation. After we determine that FUT is the best option for you, your transplant procedure is booked in.

First, a horizontal strip of skin is extracted from the donor area usually at the back and the sides of the scalp which contain several hair follicles. The strip tissue is then divided under the microscope by experienced technicians into small grafts(follicular units)with 1-3 hair follicles in each graft. These grafts are then implanted into the recipient area.

For optimal results and a natural look, feel free to reach out to us at Fortes Hair & Skin Clinic.

Here’s a quick step by step guide to help you better understand the process:

1. You’ll have a detailed consultation with our expert doctor, where all your options are discussed. If strip FUT is the best option, an appointment will be booked for you.
2. A local anaestheticwill be administered in both the recipient and donorareas. This will be the only discomfort you willexperience throughout your treatment.
3. After the anaesthetic takes effect, the procedure will start with the excision of athin strip from a safe donor area at the back of your scalp.
4. The donor site is closed using small surgical stitches and immediately covered by your surrounding hair. (The stitches are removed after 10-14 days and the donor areaheals typically to form athin linear scar.)
5. Using a fine adjustment microscopelens, the strip is divided into multiple follicular units / grafts of one, two and three hairs.
6. At the same time, small incisions are madein the recipient area of your scalp. This is where thenew grafts arecarefullyimplanted, one by one. These newly planted grafts are what will create your new hairline and improved density and will mimic the natural growthfeatures of your original hair.

Who Qualifies for an FUT Hair Transplant?

There are a couple of factors that we consider for a guidance of effective results. Some of the most vital factors that will determine a successful FUT procedure include:

1. Patients should have a genetically strong donor supply, i.e. a healthy donor region from where the strip unit will be extracted from.
2. Flexibility and laxity of the skin of the donor area at the back of the scalp region from which the extraction would take place.

Are there any Potential Side Effects?

The FUT method is an advanced surgical procedure that might have some side effects. The typicalmild side effects that you can experience after this hair transplant process include swelling, redness, itching and mild pain. However, these side effects can be relieved through medication. The long-term side effect however, is a thin linear scar that is left at the site of the donor area at the back of the head. This scar is usually covered with surrounding hair and not visible unless you wear your hair short.Generally, the recovery time for this hair transplant procedure is about 4-7 days, however you need about 14 days before you can get back to your daily routine, for example washing and exercise.

Benefits of the FUT Procedure

For those who don’t know, the FUT procedure comes with a vast range of benefits. The most outstanding benefits include:

• The Graft damage rate is below 1%:

  The rate of graft damage is remarkably lowin the FUT hair transplant technique compared to the FUE method which involves extracting individual grafts with relatively higher rate of grafts transection. Each strip is carefullydivided under high magnification microscopes into multiple grafts or follicular units, therefore the transection rate of the grafts is remarkably low under this technique.

• Permanent results:

  With this procedure, the strip is taken from a safe donor area at the back of the scalp which has DHT-resistant hair follicles. After the implantation process, these DHT-resistant roots of hair naturally adopt the normal hair characteristics and stay healthy for good, despite being transplanted to another location on the scalp.

• Minimal pain:

  We use local anaesthesia to minimize the effect of pain. The main discomfort you will experience is a sharp scratch at the administration of the local anaesthetic.

• No side effects:

  There are no severe side effects undergoing the FUT hair transplant procedure. You’ll only experience mild swelling, redness and itching.All easily controlled using prescribed medication.

• It covers a higher bald surface area in a single sitting:

  The FUT technique is the best method to cover the maximum area of baldness. The strip of the skin allows a surgeon to extract the needed number of grafts based on the required density and coverage. That’s because you can derive several grafts in one go via strip harvesting,saving time and energy.With FUE individual graft harvesting is used and is more time consuming, resulting in a longer procedure time.

Disadvantages of the FUT procedure

Scaring

The main disadvantage of the FUT technique is that the donor area is left with a thin linear scar. However with the introduction of modern Trichophytic closure techniques(a method of suture closing that delivers the minimal scaring outcome) the resulting scar will be very thin and will in fact enable your natural hair to grow through still.

We can confidently say that the FUTtransplant method is still one of the most effectiveproceduresfor hair restoration even with the side effect of minimal scarring.

Combined Hair Transplant Technique (FUE + FUT)

At Fortes Clinic, we also offer a combined hair transplant treatment that brings aspects of FUE(Follicular Unit Excision) and FUT (Follicular Unit Transplant) together. It’s a technique where we give you the best of both procedures so that you can get better results if the loss of your hair is at an advanced stage. The combination of the two transplant methods is used to achieve high-density hair in the quickest time possible because it allows for the maximum possible number of graft extractions.

How Does the Combined Method Work?

This transplant technique takes advantage of the benefits of FUE and FUT in one go. Both FUE and FUT involve the extraction of hair from a donor region and the surgical insertion into the recipient area, with the only difference being the method of extraction used to obtain the hair undergoing transplant.

FUE comprises the extraction of individual follicular units in groups of 1-3 hairs and surgically inserting them one at a time to the recipient region in the direction of natural hair growth. For FUT on the other hand, a horizontal strip of hair-bearing skin is extracted from the donor area usually at the back and the sides of the scalp which contain severalhair follicles. The strip tissue is then divided under the microscope by an experienced team into small grafts(follicular units)with 1-3 hair follicles in each graft. These grafts are then inserted into the recipient area.

With each hair transplant method havingits own merits, at Fortes we combine the two procedures to ensure that you get the best results. FUE is usually advisable for clients with a relativelysmall to medium bald area in men and small region of hair thinning in women. On the other hand, FUT is advisable for men& women with an extensive balding region. With the combination of the two techniques, you effectively achieve maximum possible coverage of the hair loss region, complete with high-density hair growth, meanwhile greatly reducing procedure time.

Combined Hair Treatment Procedure

Dr. Saaed, being a hair restoration specialist believes that the combination of the two procedures is an effective way of treating patients who have suffered extreme hair loss. The combined procedure will first involve the extraction of the strip tissues for the FUT and then finalising the process with FUE.

By using FUT to obtain hair grafts, we will efficiently achieve the extraction of abundant follicular units all at once. With such a resourceful extraction process, this saves on proceduretime and all that is left is the extraction of theremaining grafts prepared one at a time viathe FUE method.

At the end of the procedure, you will achieve natural hair withmore density and thickness. The combination method issometimes better than just a single hair transplant techniquefor severe cases of hair loss.

Benefits of the Combined FUE+FUT Hair Transplant Method

To make things as clear as possible, here’s a quick highlight of the benefits of using the combined hair transplant technique;

• By using both the FUE and the FUT methods, you will achieve the maximum possible coverage of balding area.
• Using the FUT for extraction of the follicular units saves on time because it allows for fast retrieval ofmany follicular units from the strip tissue.
• The final outcome of the procedure ensures that you achieve a high-density pack of natural hair that is thick and healthy.
• Saves a lot of time during the extraction of required grafts.
• It is an effective hair transplant method for severe cases of hair loss.

Feel free to contact us and book an appointment to find out the best procedure for your hair restoration plan. We are always happy to answer questions and aid our clients in making a confidant decision about what procedure and outcome will suit them best.

Your Hair is our Forte!