FUE Procedure
FUE is becoming the standard in hair replacement therapy. Of course, patients and their loved ones, friends, and colleagues also have questions. This blog is dedicated to answering the basics on the procedure, to give you an understanding of the experience.
Hair Basics
The average human head has 100,000 strands of hair. With aging, more and more strands either fall out or revert to vellus hair, the small hair the covers our body.
Hair Follicle Anatomy
Biology is complex, including the complexity of hair, on your head and the rest of your body. Each part of the hair follicle deserves plenty of detail. To dive in, there are four main components that compose every hair follicle.
- Papilla – Base of the hair follicle, it consists of both connective tissue and capillary loop.
- Matrix – Area around the papilla.
- Root sheath – This includes both external and internal root sheaths, one of which has several layers.
- Bulge – On the outer root sheath, responsible for hair growth and scalp repair.
And that makes up a hair follicle! Moving on. When doing a FUE procedure, the physician is removing healthy hair follicles, where all four components are intact, working methodically to insure the follicle stays intact throughout the procedure.
Transected Follicles
Transection happens when the hair follicle is damaged during the extraction. Having a skilled team is particularly vital to avoid such incidents. The procedure type matters a great deal. As you might expect, transection essentially renders the follicle incapable of growth, and therefore cannot be used for the moving of hair to the balding area. FUE can have rates as low as 98%. FUT, or follicular unit transplantation, leaves other undesirable traits.
FUT vs. FUE
Old hair restoration therapies, like FUT, involve extraction of multiple follicles at the same time. This leads to the scarring people typically associate with hair restoration therapy. During FUE, the physician extracts each follicle individually, which minimizes scarring and enhances the outcome. FUE treatments are typically indistinguishable from regular heads of hair.
What’s in a Follicle: Cost of FUE
For most, the answer is simple – FUE is the more modern option for hair transplants, and gives people the look they are desiring. After determining FUE is the right procedure for you, it’s time to consider cost. There is not a standard cost for FUE procedures, since it is associated with the procedure’s size. The cost depends on the amount of hair you need to move, and how much space is being filled.
The average procedure costs $7-$9 per graft (hair follicle). Procedure sizes typically range from 1500 to 4000 follicles, depending on the restoration.