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MyWHTC
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« on: April 21, 2008, 07:39:22 pm » |
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A common misconception about FIT/FUE is that the surgery is only for patients who wish to avoid the linear scarring that is associated with traditional “strip” hair transplants. Well, patients do in fact avoid linear donor scarring and, therefore, they are able to wear their hair shorter without the fear of exposing a long surgical incision. But this advantage is only one of many.
Before delving into the specifics of FIT/FUE, we should first mention that our clinic, World Hair Transplant Center (WHTC), also performs strip harvesting with total microscopic graft dissection. Why? We feel that both procedures, FIT/FUE and strip, have merit when performed correctly on the appropriate patients. With that being said, there are several aspects of FIT/FUE which differentiate it from strip hair transplantation. Some of these attributes help us to give our patients options that were never previously thought possible in the world of hair restoration surgery.
FIT/FUE, as the name would suggest, is a follicular unit hair transplant technology. This means that hairs are transferred to the balding zones in naturally occurring bundles, rather than arbitrary clusters. We isolate these discreet grafts with both our FIT/FUE and strip procedures. Part of the elegance of FIT/FUE, though, is the graft-by-graft extraction process. This process enables Dr. Mwamba to control a) the precise number of grafts removed b) the calculated density (CD) of the grafts and c) the transection rate.
If a patient requires “X” number of hairs or grafts to achieve the desired result, he is assured to receive that number - no more, no less – as each unit is harvested one by one. This is different from other procedures whereby grafts are separated out after a single ellipse of tissue is removed. Dr. Mwamba’s “Follicular Isolation” offers maximal precision and maximal control.
So, what is calculated density (CD)? Well, it is one of the most important (and most overlooked) aspects of hair transplantation. CD is the number of hairs per graft. In order to get a truly natural and authentic looking result, we must only use naturally occurring follicular units. These grafts appear in 1, 2, 3, and 4-hair groupings. We avoid larger groups to ensure that the results appear totally undetectable. Still, it stands to reason that, if you isolate the pure follicular units with the highest CD’s, you will average more hairs per graft than if you did not. Furthermore, you will average more hair per graft than if you did strip surgery. And, perhaps most importantly, you get a fuller overall hair transplant result without compromising naturalness.
What is transaction? Transection occurs when follicle bulbs are cut or damaged during the extraction process. Since your donor hair supply in finite, it is crucial that the transaction rate (the “T-rate”) is kept to an absolute minimum. With FIT/FUE, the extraction process is a single step, rather than the multiple steps - excision, silvering, and dissection - employed with other techniques. This means that there is a smaller chance that hair will be damaged. Moreover, the T-rate can be monitored with precision. Initially, Dr. Mwamba found the average FIT/FUE T-rate to be 3-5%. Over time the T-rate dropped to an average of 2%. This is lower than any other procedure we are aware of. It should also be noted that the few hairs that are damaged during extraction are usually only superficially damaged. This means that the tissue may be transplanted or returned to the extraction site with a reasonable chance of regrowth.
Our mission at WHTC is to improve the quality-of-life of our patients. People with hair loss concerns can count on us for natural, long-term solutions. And, while FIT/FUE is indeed a surgical procedure, we are please to report that post-operative discomfort is negligible and, in many cases, non-existent. Time and again, we see FIT/FUE delivering maximal results with minimal down time and minimal personal disruption.
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