FUE generally refers to Follicular Unit Extraction. However, it was recently redefined as Follicular Unit Excision. The goal was to increase the accuracy of the procedure’s description.
Follicular Unit Excision is the surgical technique that refers to circumferential incision of the skin around the follicular unit bundle or group of hair follicles for the purpose of extracting a full-thickness skin graft containing hair follicles, intradermal fat, dermis, and epidermis.
Between FUE and FUT hair transplants, the former is the most widely misunderstood. In fact, FUE needs to be completely redefined. In doing so, we hope that we can spread some light on the procedure. Additionally, we believe educating our patients helps them make the best choices. In the long run, these decisions are best worked out between you and your doctor.
FUE Redefined
We are honest with our patients about FUE for many reasons, but our main reason is this: we want your hair transplant to be successful. That is our primary concern, not charging you for a procedure you don’t need. Best Hair Transplant is a Five-Star Rated business on Yelp and Google.
While FUE is preferred in certain situations over FUT it is not always the best option. We discussed this topic in this article on the pros and cons of FUE transplants. There can be many reasons for this. Patient demands are frequently a factor. Other times, it’s a combination of inexperience between doctor and patient. Finally, it may be due to a greedy doctor. In fact, patients are often misled about FUE hair transplants.
Patients often come into our office dead set on getting an FUE procedure due to beliefs that have been instilled in them by other hair transplant providers and information they find online. However, these beliefs are often misguided or completely inaccurate. FUE clinics that publish or share this information have their own reasons for pushing FUE that are not in the best interest of the patient. Often one of the first steps we take at Best Hair Transplant during our free consultation is correctly informing our patients of many truths about FUE that may make it a procedure that is not the right choice for the patient.
Overharvesting
The explosion in popularity of FUE has contributed to an increase in patients affected by what is known as overharvesting. Best Hair Transplant has seen an increase every month in the number of patients that have suffered negative results from overharvesting and need another procedure done to correct the issue. Scalp micropigmentation may resolve these issues.
Source: fue-hairtransplant.blogspot.com
Overharvesting occurs when aggressive FUE procedures are performed. either once incorrectly, or multiple times excessively. This can result in visible thin patches of hair in the donor area or worse, such as almost complete donor alopecia. Visible scarring is another potential side effect.
Overharvesting is beneficial only for the doctor performing the surgery and collecting money from the patient. The doctor can sell the patient what appears to be a high-quality hair transplant. However, the reality is the doctor is overharvesting the donor site. Consequently, this will ultimately result in a negative outcome and appearance for the patient. Even the hairs transplanted from the donor site are often thin because the graft quality is low. This results in both the donor site and the transplant site not having a good appearance for the patient.
They say the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Some cases involve overly aggressive FUE transplants that overharvest donor areas. Then, the doctor suggests to their patients that more FUE is the answer when often it is not. In any case, a reputable surgeon performing the procedure is a much better option. Many hair transplant doctors are only interested in their bottom line. At Best Hair Transplant in Redondo Beach, we offer hair transplants at reasonable prices.
FUE Requires Little Training
You read that correctly. While you do need to generally understand what you’re doing to perform an FUE procedure, being a surgeon with years of experience is not required. There are many FUE doctors becoming “trained” in FUE through training programs that provide minimal experience. Many have less experience than the techs they work with. Frequently, you’ll see techs doing the majority of the work.
Many clinics opt to push FUE because they don’t have a professional surgeon on-site with the same level of experience. In fact, this is the case with Bosley; a nationwide transplant chain. They charge considerably higher prices than we do at Best Hair Transplant. And still, they opt to higher from a pool of doctors who are new to the field. Once in a while, you may find an expert at Bosley. However, you shouldn’t count on it.
As robot-performed FUE procedures become in vogue for clinics that simply want to push clients in and out the door. In fact, humans need not be present. However, a lot of doctors stop using the robot midway through. This is due to issues with the technology. Finally, they do the process by hand while still selling the patient on a premium service. After all, doctors sell robots as a “better” procedure. They claim they offer better results. Spoiler alert: they don’t!
FUE Costs More Than FUT
Clinics make more money when they push FUE procedures. However, it’s not always the best choice for the patient. They want the big bucks! And because an FUE procedure is more expensive, hair transplant doctors want to capitalize on it.
Frequently, they sell it to their patients as a “higher quality” hair transplant. This is simply not true. It’s a lie. Or at best, a simple mistake. Either way, they’re wrong. Above all, it’s unfair to you and costs you money.
Choose Best Hair Transplant
At Best Hair Transplant, we call ourselves the best because of our affordable prices. Moreover, we say this because of the quality of the work we perform. We won’t just save you money on an equitable FUT or FUE procedure. We save you money by recommending the procedure that works best for you.
Oftentimes, our patients save two-fold at Best Hair Transplant. They receive the same procedure for less than other LA hair transplant doctors would charge. Additionally, you’ll get the right procedure done for your specific hair loss situation. Frequently, this may be a FUT transplant instead of its more expensive alternative.
In any case, at Best Hair Transplant we choose the right procedure for our patients. In rare cases, that may even mean recommending no procedure or recommending an alternative such as laser hair therapy. Our goal is to make our patients have a successful transplant and for them to be happy with their procedure.
For a free consultation regarding your options, contact us today at 213-403-0455.