NeoGraft (FUE) vs. Strip Hair Transplantation
Houston, TX | Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) Hair Transplant
by Dr. Dan McGrath
In recent years there has been a tremendous amount of buzz in the hair transplant industry about a procedure known as Follicular Unit Extraction. Commonly referred to as FUE, this is the process of removal of the donor hair that is to be used for the transplant process, literally one graft at a time. The process has gained popularity for several reasons, not the least being the fear that many patients have of the strip excision for harvesting donor hair. Despite the fact that strip excision is the gold standard for the procedure many patients are fearful of potential scarring.
It is very important to understand exactly what the difference is between the two procedures. With any hair transplant procedure you must harvest hair from the donor area in the back of the scalp. How you harvest this hair is the only difference between an FUE vs Strip Excision procedure. The rest of the transplant process and results are exactly the same. In the FUE process a very specialized tool is used to extract the grafts and the tool that is used is completely up to the surgeon and his or her personal preference. There are several devises on the market that work very well, I for one use both the Neograft and a device called the Safescribe Motorized FUE Extractor.
Why NeoGraft?
Well enter Neograft which is an automated hair restoration system that is used to perform the extraction process for an FUE procedure.
The FDA-cleared NeoGraft system automates the surgical removal, collection, and placement of individual hair follicles, one at a time, eliminating the need for doctors to remove a large strip from the back of the scalp. The targeted removal of individual hair follicles via FUE, is a minimally-invasive microsurgical procedure that has been available for several years, but until now has been too time-consuming and costly for many patients.
The Neograft automated hair transplant system in the proper hands is a wonderful tool that requires experience and artistry to perform. FUE hair transplantation has increased in popularity and the Neograft system in my hands provides an efficient and cost effective method for FUE harvesting.