Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT)

This is a hair restoration technique where the patients hair is transplanted in groups of one to four hairs. These are called follicular units, and each unit contains the sebaceous oil glands, the muscle, and sometimes fine hairs. These small units can be transplanted several thousand at a time in a single operating session, increasing the cosmetic benefits of this procedure.

If done properly, the results iwll look the same as natural hair growth, and the hair transplant procedure will not be detectable. FUT has several key benefits that should be considered when determining of the procedure is right for you:

Maximizing hair transplant growth

Because the follicular unit is a distinct anatomic entity, preserving it intact during the extraction is thought to maximize growth. In FUT, after hair is removed from the back of the scalp in a single strip, stereo-microscopic dissection allows the individual follicular units to be removed from this strip without being damaged.

Natural look

Follicular Unit Transplantation enables the hair transplant to look natural both at the individual follicular unit level and in regards to the overall graft. Since scalp hair normally grows in units of 1 to 4 hairs, the use of these naturally occurring units in the FUT procedure ensures that each graft will be identical to the surrounding follicular units. Thus, when the transplanted follicular units grow hair after a transplant, the overall results of the transplant will appear natural.

Additionally, by using individual follicular units, rather than larger grafts, the surgeon has a greater total number of grafts with which to work. This allows the surgeon to distribute the grafts more evenly over the scalp for a more natural overall distribution of hair.

 Minimizing scalp trauma

In order to make the hair transplant look as natural as possible, it is important for the subsequent transplanted hair to emerge from natural looking skin. Hence, minimizing trauma to the scalp during surgery is very important. This is accomplished by trimming away any excess tissue that may be present around the follicular units, before inserting them into the recipient’s scalp.

A follicle is a small compact structure surrounded by substantial amounts of non-hair bearing skin. The extra tissue can be safely removed without damaging the follicles, using the method of stereo-microscopic dissection. These small follicular unit grafts can then be placed into tiny incisions in the patient’s scalp, in effect minimizing damage to the scalp’s connective tissue and blood supply.

This is in stark contrast to procedures such as mini-micrografting and plug transplants that cause cosmetic problems. Some of these include dimpling and pigment changes in the skin, elevation of the grafts, and a thinned shiny look to the scalp. Most of these problems can be avoided using very small grafts and very small recipient wounds.

Another advantage of making small recipient wounds is the ability to create a snug fit for the follicular unit grafts. Unlike the punch grafts and mini-grafting techniques, each of which removes a small amount of tissue in the recipient scalp area, the small and trimmed follicular unit grafts used in FUT fit into small, needle-made incisions without any need for removing tissue.

This preserves the elasticity of the scalp and holds the tiny grafts snugly in place. At the conclusion of surgery, the snug fit facilitates wound healing and helps to ensure that the grafts will get enough oxygen from the surrounding tissue in order to maximize their chance of survival.