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FUE too risky?

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Hairforever

Valued member
I know FUE versus strip is constantly being debated but I wondered what the views of people on this forum are about the merits of each.

Having had a disastrous FUE procedure I am very reluctant about trying FUE again in the future, especially as I have since read that the yield resulting from FUE transplanted hair is extremely poor compared to the traditional strip method which is less traumatic to the individual grafts prior to their placement in the recipient sites.

I have a hair transplant booked with SMG in July and am hoping for 2,000 grafts by strip in spite of already having had 5 hair transplants. I know this number could be achieved by FUE but what is the point if the majority of the hairs don't grow after transplantation? If it means I have to settle for 1500 grafts by strip then so be it.

The fact that surgeons are still undecided on the best FUE equipment to use suggests to me that FUE is still in its experimental stages. I can understand the use of FUE for very small areas and concealing strip scars but otherwise it seems to me that FUE patients are taking a greater risk than strip patients.
 
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Philb

Member
Hi hairforever,

Firstly, good luck for July.

I agree with much of what you say but I do not blame FUE as a technique for poor results, anymore than blame FUT for poor results. They are only the techniques; it is how they are applied that makes the difference.

FUE is much harder and demanding to perform medically/technically, much more time consuming, and does have more chances of poorer results compared to Strip because there are more factors to consider through the procedure from harvesting to placement. I do not think it makes FUE less of a technique it just means the person applying the technique has to understand the limitations and work within them, rather than making FUE and Strip try to compete, be it on graft numbers, speed of extraction etc. There is no reason for each to clash because they offer different benefits and can when both performed well complement each other.

I think a problem is marketing or the way FUE is perceived, as a potential HT patient it is very appealing, no linear scar that screams HT, no real down time healing of the donor, simply take hairs randomly from the back and sides and that's it! To many this will sound perfectly logical and quite simple.

The reality is obviously very different and with any surgical procedure there are pluses and negatives. Regardless of not leaving a linear scar it will still scar, maybe not visible when performed well but it is still there, regardless how small a punch is used it will still have an impact on the surrounding skin and hairs, and because of the very micro/partial blind nature of the technique there is a greater chance of a error. Then I guess comes into play the person using the technique, we all have strengths and weaknesses. FUE having so many factors to contend with when punching and placing; handling of the graft has to be more precise as there is generally less fatty tissue and is much easier to damage than a Strip graft; when extracting, pressure application, angle, direction, depth, hair characteristics, skin splay, laxity, all being multiplied by the amount of FU to be extracted and not always the same for every extraction, some maybe simply more adept at the technique than others.

In our experience we do not bias between the two, FUE is not the answer to replace Strip, it is different and when performed well no reason why the yields and results cannot mirror that of Strip, just has many different variables to Strip that have to be respected and understood.
 
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Hairforever

Valued member
Thanks Philb for your informative post. Like you said, in the hands of people who know what they're doing FUE outcomes have a much greater chance of success. I guess with my FUE procedure never had much of a chance of being a success. However it seems to me that even average surgeons can achieve some excellent results with strip whereas with FUE their limitations are more obvious.
 
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drmwamba

Valued member
I totally agree with you .An average physician can have excellent results with a strip than in FUE.

In the other side an average physician can mess up your donor area in a way you will have to run from repair cases to repair cases .FUE have lesser damage in the donor.

With each technique there is a learning curve and someone has to know the limits and risks of each technique.

I did a presentation at the ESHRS meeting in Lisbone and I will present an article about indications of FIT/FUE.And of course I will tell you who is also a good candidate for strip.
 
Bigmac

Bigmac

Administrator
Staff member
Hopefully after your strip HT you will still have some donor available for fue if you require it.

 
Prohairclinic

Prohairclinic

Prohairclinic FUE and SMP
Hairforever wrote:
The fact that surgeons are still undecided on the best FUE  equipment to use suggests to me that FUE is still in  its experimental stages. I can understand the use of FUE for  very small areas and concealing strip scars but otherwise it seems to me that FUE patients are taking a greater risk than strip patients.  

Hi,
Frankly, I believe that most respected drs know that a well executed FUE will result in equal growth yield than a well executed strip surgery.

An intact grafts wil produce hair, wether it is harvested by strip or fue.

If you are going for a strip surgery you are likely to look for the best in the field and you should do the same when you are looking for FUE.

The big issue is that even to date there are only a handfull experienced truly dedicated FUE surgeons around.

Bart
 
sl

sl

BHR Clinic Patient Advisor
Hi, sorry to hear about your FUE experience.

In the right hands I believe that FUE has pretty much the same transection rate as Strip. The key is in the right hands. It is very much more time consuming and labour intensive than strip, for doctor especially. It requires a lot of skill to extract each graft and is completely different to strip surgery in that the grafts come out one at a time and at all sorts of angles. I had to move my head in many different directions whilst extraction was taking place, same for chin grafts also that can really have some acute extraction angles.

Wish you all the best though in whatever surgery you proceed to have!
 
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