|
Single
Follicular Unit with unusual curl - courtesy of Dr. Woods
& Dr. Campbell
|
Follicular
Curl: A Challenge To All Follicular Single Unit Extraction
Procedures
Worldwide
exclusive: first illustration of the difference in follicular
curl between a Caucasian patient and a patient of African
descent
|
This article
represents strictly the opinions of the publisher.
The statements expressed herein have not be verified, approved
or disapproved by Dr. Woods & Dr. Campbell
Not
All FUEs Are Created Equal
Follicular
Unit Extraction FUE vs
Follicular SINGLE
Unit Extraction FSUE
Follicular
unit extraction (FUE) is undeniably the most sought after
alternative to traditional hair transplant procedures in the world.
Invented and perfected by Dr. Woods & Dr. Campbell, FUE has set
an irreversible trend toward minimally invasive and patient friendly
hair transplant procedures. One SINGLE follicular unit at a time, no
scalpel, no traumatic experience. If you are not familiar with this
breakthrough in hair transplantation, click here for an in-depth
discussion.
With
so many obvious advantages over traditional strip transplants, it is
only natural that more and more doctors are scrambling to offer this
new technique to their patients. The
problem arises when every doctor is selling and pitching FUE as if
it was a commodity. It is virtually impossible to distinguish one
doctor's FUE technique from the other.
Dr.
Woods & Dr. Campbell recently reiterate that the essence of
this procedure is in SINGLE UNIT EXTRACTION, hence the
acronym FSUE which stands for Follicular SINGLE Unit Extraction. This
term was precise and distinguished their technique from others. The
emphasis is to non-invasively extract ONE follicular unit at
a time from the donor site with NO transection or damage to
surrounding follicles. The burden is on the doctor to prove
this to his patients.
Extraction
Device &
Merit of Mega FUE Sessions
When
FUE is done correctly, it is the most donor efficient technique in
the world. There is little or no donor wastage compared to
traditional strip transplants. However, when FUE is done blindly using unsafe coring devices or punches that are designed to enhance
extraction speed instead of precision, this can inflict irreparable
damage to the neighboring areas of the donor follicles that are
being harvested. Patients should inquire whether the extraction tool
and technique their FUE doctors use can safely remove ONE follicular unit at a
time without damaging or transecting surrounding follicles on or below the skin.
Patients should also inquire if the so called mega FUE sessions is
accomplished by using a mini punch blindly coring out the follicular
units over the donor site. For FUE techniques to be truly effective
with a minimal of transection in the patient's precious donor
area, the emphasis has to be on Follicular SINGLE Unit
Extraction, one follicular unit at a time. This cannot be
compromised.
Transection
& Follicular Curl
World's first
official comparison of the follicular curl between a Caucasian
patient (A) and a patient of African descent (B).
photo courtesy of
Dr. Woods & Dr. Campbell
A
"clean extraction" will yield a full follicular unit
intact from tip to bottom with some fat tissues attached to the end.
The pictures above illustrate what the follicular units may look
like under a "clean extraction". A follicular unit is
transected when it is unintentionally cut off horizontally somewhere
in the middle during the extraction process. The extraction process
would be very simple and fool proof if all follicular units bear a
90 degrees angle like a straight line directly underneath the
surface of the skin (eg: picture A above). However, in
reality, follicular units tend to grow at a certain angle beneath
the skin with a certain "curl". The extent of the curl
varies from person to person. It may also vary from one donor site
to another in the same patient too. As a result, it is always a
challenge trying to obtain a "clean extraction" of the
follicular unit with no transection. Above is a perfect illustration
of the difference in curl between two follicular units extracted
from two different patients. As you can imagine, extracting
follicular unit B would prove to be a lot more difficult than
extracting folllicular unit A because there is no way for the
doctor to know in advance the extent of the curl that exists beneath
the skin. An experienced FUE transplant doctor should be able to
overcome these obstacles and prove to his patients that transection
is not an issue under his proprietary technique.
World's
First Comparison of the Follicular Curl
Between A Caucasian Patient and a
Patient of African Descent
|
photo
courtesy of
Dr.
Woods & Dr. Campbell
|
In February 2004, Dr. Woods & Dr. Campbell
presented in HairSite the
world's first comparison of the follicular curl between a
Caucasian patient and a patient of African descent. See photo
A and B above. The comparison clearly illustrates the
challenges facing the follicular unit extraction process.
Photo C to the left illustrates that the follicular curl can
sometimes go like a full circle beneath the skin which makes
it almost impossible for any surgeons to obtain a clean extraction. |
About
Dr. Woods & Dr. Campbell
Dr.
Woods & Dr. Campbell are the world's leading experts in follicular
SINGLE unit extraction hair transplant procedures. No strip excision, no
stitches, no scalpel, no traumatic surgery, and no legal disclaimer, The
Woods Technique is commonly regarded as the safest choice for hair
transplant surgery. Each patient is afforded the luxury to view the
surgery via real time high magnification video camera
display. Patients can verify and examine through the camera display
that each follicular unit is safely extracted from the donor site
with no damage inflicted on surrounding area. All the photos
presented in this article are provided by courtesy of Dr. Woods
& Dr. Campbell. The follicular units are extracted from two
different patients with very different hair characteristics and
follicular curl. The photo below shows follicular units taken from
the same patient. It illustrates that not only does the follicular
curl vary from patient to patient, but the extent of the curl can
vary quite substantially within the same patient too.
"Clean
extraction" of Follicular units
taken from the same patient.
Photo courtesy of Dr.
Woods & Dr. Campbell
To find
out more about The Woods Technique,
please click the following
The
Woods Technique News & Updates
If
you have any questions or comments
please post in the following forums
HAIR
TRANSPLANT FORUM
|
Information
about this article
|
| Article
# |
286 |
| Title |
Follicular
Curl: A Challenge To All Follicular Single Unit Extraction
Procedures. Worldwide exclusive: first illustration of the
difference in follicular curl between a Caucasian patient
and a patient of African descent. |
| Date |
04/23/04 |
| Source |
HairSite
Editorial |
| Forum |
Hair
Transplant |
| Archive |
Hair
Transplant |
| Contact |
hairsite@aol.com |
|
