What the FUT (Follicular Unit Transplant) Procedure Is Like?
There are several steps involved in hair transplantation:
- First, the donor area (usually at the back of the scalp) is trimmed and the hair above it is taped to keep it up and away from the donor site. The donor site is then numbed with a local anesthetic.
- Next, a strip of donor tissue is surgically removed and the incision is sutured together.
- Using a special microscope, the donor tissue is dissected and individual follicular units (or micrografts) are prepared.
- Local anesthesia is then administered to the recipient area of the scalp (trimming or shaving the hair here isn’t necessary).
- Tiny incisions are made in the recipient area in an irregular pattern that mimics the way hair grows naturally.
- The micrografts are then carefully placed in these tiny incisions. They are placed in varying densities, with the smallest one- to two-hair grafts placed in the front of the hairline, and three- to four-hair grafts placed behind them.
Immediately after the transplant, you’ll have hundreds of tiny incisions with short hair stubble sticking out from the new grafts.
In two and a half to three months, the new hair will start growing in, and will grow at the normal rate of one-half to one inch per month thereafter.