FUT vs. FUE Hair Transplant

In Follicular Unit Transplantation, hair has traditionally been harvested using a long, thin donor strip that is subsequently dissected into individual follicular units with the aid of special microscopes. In an alternative harvesting method, called Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE), individual follicular unit grafts can be removed directly from the back and sides of the scalp using a small, round, 1-mm punch-like instrument.

The advantage that the FUE method has over FUT is that FUE does not leave a linear donor scar, causes less bleeding, less post operative discomfort and requires no sutures. The early FUE procedure had a number of disadvantages including an increased risk of follicular damage in extraction which can lead to sub-optimal growth of the hair transplant. However due to advances in FUE more recent research indicates that FUE can produce results similar but not better than FUT. The key determinant seems to be the experience of the hair transplant team and the quality of the extracted grafts.