FUE Vs FUT Hair Transplant – What’s The Difference?
Male Pattern baldness or hair loss is primarily attributed to an individual’s genetics. Still, the environment and lifestyle choices of the individual can also play a major role in hair loss. Fortunately, hair loss of any kind is reversible, and many treatment options are available for patients enduring hair thinning or balding. Hair transplants can repair damaged hair follicles in the affected scalp area and restore hair density with remarkable success rates.
A hair transplant is a surgical procedure in which hair follicles from a donor site are transplanted to the recipient site. The transplanted hair follicles grow naturally and begin to produce new strands of hair as they normally would.
Types of Hair Transplants
Two main hair transplant techniques are regularly used across the world: the FUT (Follicular Unit Transplantation) and the FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction). While both methods are equally effective, there are some important differences between the two techniques you should be aware of before deciding which method is right for you. To help you make your decision, here are some important things to remember about the two most popular hair restoration methods.
Follicular Unit Transplantation: Commonly known as the ‘strip method,’ FUT is based on the surgical extraction of a thin, long piece of scalp tissue. The extracted strip of tissue is then divided into follicular units, which are then grafted onto the hairless area of the scalp and stitched up. The resulting scars are usually concealed well by the surrounding hairs, but bald patches may be visible for several months following surgery. Hair typically grows in around 8-12 weeks from the day of the operation. FUT is performed under general anesthetics and takes about 2 hours to complete.
Follicular Unit Extraction: Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is harvesting individual follicles from the scalp. The procedure is more precise than FUT and is considered more effective and less invasive for hair transplantation. The procedure involves the removal of multiple hair follicles at a time without damaging the surrounding tissue. After the hair follicles are removed, they are transplanted to areas on the scalp that are bald or thinning. As a result, the transplanted hair will look natural and continue growing like the rest of your hair.
The Key Differences to Understand Before Choosing Hair Transplant
If there are two commonly used procedures, which one is the best for you? Right? We are familiar with the wide range of questions our clients have for us before choosing the ideal hair transplant. But before we get to them, it is important to understand the key differences between them, which are as follows:
Scarring: To be precise and candid, both hair transplant procedures leave scars on your scalp since the procedure is surgical. Since FUT involves the extraction of an entire strip of skin containing healthy hair follicles using a scalpel, it leaves long linear scars at the extraction site. FUE leaves small scars surrounding individual hair follicles that look like dots since doctors use a specialized tool called the ‘punch’ to extract individual follicles. Despite the possibility of scars, it should never be a reason for worry if you are considering hair transplant because they are inconspicuous and cannot be noticed once the hair on your scalp has grown.
Yield: Based on preliminary research into the subject, it would appear that the consensus points to FUE being superior to FUT. Unfortunately, that isn’t true since if it were, doctors across the globe would have stopped practicing FUT. FUT usually yields more hair growth than FUE, which makes it well suited for patients who require treatment on a large area of the scalp. Hence those patients experiencing significant balding can expect visibly significant results at the end of the hair transplant procedure.
Healing and Recovery: FUT procedures tend to have a longer recovery time, and patients require the use of painkillers during the recovery process. The healing process usually takes up to 10 days. With FUE, the recovery time is significantly shorter, and patients can recover as quickly as 3 days with strict adherence to our recovery regimens.
Quality and Number of Grafts: One of the primary reasons behind the high yield rate of FUT is the quality of hair follicles that it harvests. Since a surgeon extracts a longer strip of skin from the scalp, more healthy hair follicles are available compared to FUE’s ‘punch and extract’ approach.
A Look at The Economics
Cost is always the primary concen for patients looking to restore scalp hair density. It is also one of the most significant factors differentiating FUT and FUE, which is why we have covered it in detail.
Hair transplant costs ranges according to a number of factors which are as follow:
Location: Like it is the case with most specialized medical services, hair transplant costs vary vastly on the location of your residence. Your city’s relative cost of living and the number of surgeons available to carry out the procedure vastly influences its cost.
Type of Procedure: As covered in the previous segments of this article, FUT procedures tend to cost lesser than FUE procedures. Depending on what treatment fulfills your personal needs, the surgeon’s choice to proceed with FUT or FUE significantly determines your budget.
Surgeon Reputation: After the cost of medical treatment, the success rate of the practitioner is among the most significant factors influencing treatment cost. A hair transplant clinic with an impeccable track record will charge its patients more.
Scalp are to Be Covered: While FUT is more suited to patients on a rigid budget, those who require a relatively large scalp area coverage would find themselves on the expensive side of the treatment, whose costs match that of an FUE treatment regimen.
A thorough consultation with surgeons can help you plan for the procedure better. At L&P aesthetics we believing in empowering the patient with choice!
Reach out to us today with your queries for a free consultation.
Here’s what you can expect during a NeoGraft procedure:
- 1. Your surgeon will shave either your entire head or the section of scalp from which hair follicles will be donated.
- 2. They will then apply a local anesthetic to your scalp. They may offer you a mild sedative to help you relax during the procedure.
- 3. They will then extract your hair follicles with a special wand that uses pneumonic pressure.
- 4. The surgeon will then implant the hair follicles to the balding parts of your scalp using a specialized tool.
- 5. The surgeon may apply a dressing to the donor site and the implantation site to help manage bleeding.
Who needs a NeoGraft procedure?
Even though there isn’t any medical benefit to hair transplantation surgery, it may help you feel more confident about your appearance if you’re self-conscious about your hairline.
Hair transplantation surgeries generally work best for people with androgenic alopeciaTrusted Source, also known as male or female pattern hair loss. Candidates for hair transplantation typically:
- • are free of conditions that may affect surgery, such as high blood pressure, unmanaged diabetes, and conditions that affect blood clotting
- • are older than 25 years old
- • have thick hair fibers
- • have hair loss along the hairline
- • have a hair color close to their skin color
- • have hair loss that isn’t caused by stress or medication
NeoGraft vs. FUT and FUE hair transplants
NeoGraft, FUT, and FUE follow similar procedures, and all three can provide you with aesthetically pleasing results. During FUT surgery, a surgeon will cut a strip of hair from the back or side of your head before removing individual hair follicles.
This surgery is generally cheaper than FUE and NeoGraft, but it leaves a linear scar at the donation site. The scar may be noticeable if you wear your hair short.
FUE and the NeoGraft follow the same procedure, except NeoGraft is semi-automated. During traditional FUE, a surgeon manually removes and hair follicles.
During NeoGraft surgery, hair follicles are harvested using suction instead of manual extraction and implanted using a specialized tool that controls the depth of insertion.
NeoGraft recovery
NeoGraft is less invasive than FUT and traditional FUE surgery since the automated system controls the depth of incisions. According to Venus Treatments, the implants should heal within about a week and most people return to their usual routine within 2 weeks. Many people return to their jobs days after the surgery. Your surgeon can give you specific expectations and recommendations about how to take care of your grafts post-surgery.
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To schedule your hair transplant consult with Drs. Lieberman & Parikh, please call our office at (650) 327-3232 or drop us a note here.