How to Decide Which Hair Follicle Transplant is Right for You

June 13, 2022

That first time you look in the mirror and notice that your hair is thinning is something you will remember for the rest of your life. At first, it’s easy to try to not notice it. You tell yourself that maybe you just need to start taking some vitamins or reduce stress and everything will be fine. Maybe you will even just avoid looking in the mirror for a while and then when you slip up and take that glance, your heart sinks in your chest. It’s at that moment you know you need to start looking into a hair follicle transplant.

Luckily for you, hair follicle transplant surgery has come a long way in the last 40 or so years. The entire process has become much less invasive and painful than it used to be, and the results have improved tremendously. The old “hair plug” look is a thing of the past due to both the Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) and the Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) methods of hair transplants.

Which Hair Follicle Transplant Procedure is Right for Me?

Now you can, depending on your stage of hair loss, get your entire hair transplant done in a day. The process has been refined over the years and the science behind the hair transplant has evolved to the point where there are doctors who specialize in both popular types of procedures. Here at Best Hair Transplant Los Angeles, we only employ these hair transplant experts so that you know the doctor performing your procedure is the best.

So, when that dreaded day rears its ugly head, where do you start? How do you know if an FUE or a FUT hair transplant is right for you and your situation? Google is a good place to begin, but it sometimes can leave you with more questions than answers. Here at best Hair Transplant Los Angeles, we have decided to answer all your questions today in our blog.

Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT)

Back when the very first hair transplants were being performed in the United States, large portions of scalp containing healthy growing hair were sliced away by surgeons and then implanted in large diameter holes punched out of the balding areas of the scalp. The tissue that was punched out from the balding area was then just discarded by the doctors. Not only was the procedure extremely invasive and painful, but the results of the early hair transplants were also not great. After everything healed up the transplanted hair grafts would have large gaps of bald scalp between them that created the iconic “hair plug” look.

It wasn’t until 1995 that the hair restoration industry was saved by the FUT technique. Drs. Bernstein and Rassman discovered that if you extracted a “strip” of hair-bearing tissue from a healthy donor area of the scalp, you can then use a stereomicroscope to carefully separate the individual hair follicles from the strip for implantation into the area of the scalp affected by the hair loss. This gave surgeons a much better able to create a natural-looking hairline.

The FUT technique was initially met with a great deal of skepticism and resistance by the hair restoration industry. Due to the brand-new internet communities, the results of the FUT technique were easily spread from person to person via chat rooms. Eventually, more and more hair doctors began to adopt the FUT method of transplant. By the year 2000, the FUT hair transplant was mainstream and had become the “gold standard” in surgical hair restoration.

Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE)

The FUE hair follicle transplant was performed well before the FUT technique in Japan in the 1930s by a physician named Dr. Shoji Okuda. However, due to the reclusive nature of the Japanese people during that time, the technique was not shared with the world. Now, the FUE method is overtaking the FUT procedure in popularity and demand in the hair restoration industry.

The major difference in FUE vs FUT is how the hair is extracted from the donor area. In an FUE procedure, the surgeon will extract the individual hair follicles, one by one, using a specialized punch tool that will excise the hair follicle from the skin of the scalp without damaging the root, or bulb of the follicle. Then, the implantation phase of the hair transplant is similar to the FUT technique.

FUE takes a great deal of time to complete than the FUT method. However, it is known to be more precise. A FUE hair transplant also involves less scarring than with the FUT method and is there is less post procedure discomfort as well. It is for these reasons the FUE hair transplant has become more popular in the hair industry, although there are situations where a FUT procedure is still called for. For instance, the FUT method is more suitable for individuals who are experiencing late-stage baldness.

The Anatomy of the Hair Follicle

To really understand which hair follicle transplant will be right for you, we need to understand what is happening during a transplant, and really, what a hair follicle is. Most believe that hair follicles are the hair itself. This is incorrect as hair follicles reside under the skin of the scalp, hidden from the naked eye. The hair follicle is responsible for the hair that grows, and the health and size of the follicle is one of the most important factors in all of the hair restoration industry.

The human hair follicle is more interesting than one would think, Due to the importance of having a full head of hair, not only for someone’s confidence, but also for social standing, there has been a lot of research into hair growth and restoration.

A hair follicle has 3 regions. The first is the lower segment of the follicle called the bulb, with the middle segment called the isthmus, and the upper segment the infundibulum. In the bulb of the follicle living cells divide in order to grow new hair out of the hair follicle. This division of cells is due to blood vessels nourishing the cells in the hair bulb, as well as delivering important hormones that will control and modify the hair growth and structure at different times of a human’s lifetime like after birth and during puberty.

Robotic FUE Hair Follicle Transplants

Over the course of the last 5 years, there has been some new technology introduced into the hair restoration industry. Robotics come to mind. Technology that allegedly makes the FUE hair transplant process quicker and easier.

The ARTAS Robotic Hair Restoration is what is called a “physician-assisted” technology. It is literally a robotic arm that utilizes programmed artificial intelligence to perform an FUE hair surgery itself. The major selling point for the ARTAS Robot is that the procedure is less invasive than a FUT surgery. Additionally, the ARTAS system doesn’t leave you with a large scar like a FUT surgery. Basically, the ARTAS system touts itself as the newest hair restoration technology; however, it just does the very same thing an FUE surgeon would do during an FUE procedure.

Next in line in the “latest and greatest” hair transplant robots is the hand-held NeoGraft FUE machine. This gadget supposedly automates the extraction and implantation of hair grafts during an FUE procedure. It claims to eliminate the “inefficiencies” of a manual FUE hair follicle transplant.

What it really boils down to with both of these devices is how you feel. Whether you feel more comfortable trusting a machine to perform your hair transplant surgery or a skilled, experienced surgeon. With both the ARTAS and NeoGraft devices, they’re marketed to doctors who typically wouldn’t offer hair transplant services. Frequently, they’re sold to doctors as “fully automated” hair transplant machines. Hailed as a device that allows doctors with no hair transplant experience can do hair transplants. Regardless of how well these machines work, without the skill and experience that comes from career of hair transplants, there is going to be a large margin for error.

You Can Trust Best Hair Transplant Los Angeles with Your Hair Follicle Transplant

Here at Best Hair Transplant Los Angeles, we don’t use any robots or machines to do our hair follicle transplants. All our surgeons are hair transplant expert surgeons that only do hair transplants as their main focus of practice. That way you can be sure that you are in the hands of a hair specialist.

We offer the highest quality FUE and FUT hair transplants with the most affordable rates in the industry as well. How? We keep our overhead low and pass those savings on to you. Additionally, we don’t set our pricing scale in accordance with our location or our surgeon’s egos. Trust us, you’ll find that’s quite common at other Los Angeles hair follicle transplant FUE clinics. Finally, we care about our patients and genuinely want them to look and feel their best.

Call us today and talk to one of our hair specialists. We can help you decide which hair follicle transplant is right for you.

Affordable Los Angeles Hair Transplants

Best Hair Transplant is the best place to schedule your hair follicle transplant in Los Angeles. We’ve helped both men and women regrow their lost hair. But don’t take our word for it. We suggest learning as much as possible about hair restoration. Do so prior to making a decision on how to address your hair loss. Not every procedure is right for everyone.

At Best Hair Transplant, we’re proud of our results and happy to provide hair restoration services. Additionally, we’re proud to make hair transplants affordable and help you save money on a variety of hair transplants. To ensure your ease of mind, you can view our customer recommendations HERE. Furthermore, you can also see our Google reviews and Yelp reviews. We can’t wait to help you start restoring your lost hair.