Most people have heard about hair transplant but frankly speaking, many don’t understand the procedure properly. Here we will try to change that and make this process more understandable for everyone in a very non-technical way.

Two most commonly performed hair transplant techniques in the UAE are:

• Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) hair transplant
• Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) hair transplant

Both these procedures are performed in a hair transplant clinic under local anaesthesia. However, your doctor might decide to sedate you if you have high sensitivity to pain. Read on to understand the two procedures:

Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT) Hair Restoration Process

In this procedure the first step is to administer local anaesthesia to numb the donor site followed by excision of a strip of hair-bearing scalp skin from the donor area, which is either from the back or any side of the head. The donor area is then sutured together, with a thread that can be absorbable or un-absorbable.

In the next step follicular units are prepared for transplantation in the recipient area. The donor strip is dissected into follicular units under a powerful stereo microscope. The grafts thus obtained are then implanted in the recipient area, to which local anaesthesia has already been given.

Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) Hair Restoration Process

In this procedure individual follicular unit grafts are extracted individually using a micro-punch from a balding resistant area. Before this, however, the hairs on the donor area are trimmed so that the surgeon could see the scalp clearly. Also, the donor site is numbed by administering local anaesthesia.

After enough grafts have been extracted, they are then transplanted. Several tiny incisions are made by the surgeon at the recipient site for plantation purpose. One by one follicular units are then placed in these incisions. This then completes the whole procedure.

Difference between FUE and FUT Hair Transplant

The major difference between the two procedures is the way of extracting follicular units. Some other notable differences include:

• FUE is less invasive as compared to FUT
• Linear scars are not produced in FUE as opposed to FUT
• Fast recovery is observed in FUE than FUT
• No complications and minimal pain in FUE than FUT
• FUE is ideal for small areas
• FUE allows body hair transplant, while FUT doesn’t

In both procedures special care is required towards location, angle and depth of the transplanted hair follicle, for best results. The more natural your hair transplant looks the better the procedure will be considered.  As a patient it is imperative that you study both techniques and decide which would suit you better. But it is always advised to consider your surgeon’s opinion as a final word.

If you have any further questions regarding the two processed you can contact us. We have an expert team of hair transplant surgeons waiting to answer your call. The highly qualified team has years of experience in surgical hair restoration and can recommend the best procedure depending on your scalp situation.