FUE Hair Transplantation
A hair transplantation procedure is moving hair from the area of the head where the hair grows most thick, to the area where the hair is thinning or balding. When harvesting hairs from the donor area, there are 3 methods including FUT, FUE, and combination of FUT and FUE, each method has their own pros and cons.
Harvest
FUE is a method whereby the hairs from the donor site are removed one at a time. The doctor will use a special hole punch machine to extract the hair follicles from the back of the head. FUE hair transplantation surgery is still incisional surgery, which will form multiple circular scars spread across larger area, however surgeon’s technique will ensure no scar is visible. Once a sufficient amount of grafts have been extracted, the doctor then moves on to the transplant phase. If your surgeon suggests using combination of FUE and FUT method, in the most cases, the reason is being able to harvest more hairs than using single method.
- No linear scar
- No stitches removal
- Minimal post-op process
- Donor area heals much faster
Transplantation
After the grafts are extracted from the donor area, the doctor implants them into the recipient area of the scalp. The recipient area is usually around the front, top, crown and sides. The doctor uses a special tool to then implant the hair into the scalp. The doctor takes great care to make sure the hair is inserted in the natural direction of the hair growth.
FUE Characteristics
- Takes around 6-9 hours
- No sutures or linear scar
- Fast recovery on the donor area
- Not very painful
- The survivability rate of grafts is over 95%
- Great for short hairstyles
FUE Options
Shaved
The shaved method is the fastest and easiest way to do the FUE procedure. The hair that needs to be extracted can easily be identified and harvested. The downside is that there will be visible holes on the donor area for a few weeks as the head is healing.
Partially Shaved
The partially shaved method allows you to leave the hair long at the back and only remove hair from the donor section. The shaved area is covered by the remaining hair.
Unshaved
This is the most difficult method which requires the most skill. The doctor will extract the hair from the donor area without shaving the hair.
Step 1
Examination With the Doctor or Free Online Consultation
Step 2
1:1 Consultation With the Doctor
Step 3
New Hairline Design
Step 4
Administer Anesthesia
Step 5
Hair Harvesting From Donor Site
Step 6
Transplant Procedure
Step 7
Post Surgery Care on Day 2
Timeline
You may feel pain for the first couple days. The day after surgery, we will provide post-operative care, including removing the bandage from donor area, disinfection dressing, shampoo service and laser treatment for the maximum viability. We recommend using anti-biotic spray for 3 days. Most of the cases, international patients can fly back to their home country after day 2, we recommend staying in Korea for 2~4 days for the best recovery.
You can wash your hair by yourself at home starting on the third day. Please do not rub the recipient area for 2 weeks. After applying the recommended bubble shampoo, rinse your hair after 2-3 minutes. You can wash your hair normally after 2 weeks.
70-80% of the transplanted hair will fall out during this period together with some original hairs, but please do not worry as this is normal. After 3 to 5 months, hairs will start to grow normally.
You can experience folliculitis in the surgical area during this period before hairs start to grow. In most cases, applying the antibiotic ointment (Fucidin, Madecassol cream, etc) will resolve the issue.
This is the period patients worry the most because hairs will be going through shock loss, but also the period new hairs start to grow slowly, mostly growing like 1cm per month, so please do not worry, it takes a bit more time before it begins to resemble the result we are hoping for.
After 6 months, hairs start to become comb-able.
Hairs will actively grow on the recipient area, with hair loss treatment, number of hairs and thickness can even be better in this period.
The hair will gain in thickness & length, and may also change in character. It generally takes one year to see the full results of a hair transplant.
From about the 4th month, hairs will start to grow slowly. It is normal to look like you are losing the hairs up to 3-6 months, or even look worse than before, however, please do not worry, we just need to be patient a little bit longer.