Follicular Unit Transplant Technique

Abstract

Hair loss is a common and often progressive condition that affects patients of all ages, races, and genders. For some patients, hair loss may be caused by natural aging along with a genetic and hormonal predisposition, while in others it is a sign of an underlying medical condition. Despite the high prevalence and overall benign nature of hair loss, many patients suffer from significant negative psychosocial effects such as reduced self-esteem and self-confidence [1] along with a reduced perception of attractiveness, likeability, and overall success by others [2, 3]. These factors have spurred an intense social interest in camouflaging or combatting hair loss for centuries and multiple medical and surgical treatments have been devised with varying success. Arguably, the first hair transplant procedure was reported by Hodara [4] in 1897, and eyebrow and eyelash transplant techniques were first described in Japan in the 1930s [5]. The modern era of hair transplantation began in the late 1950s in New York, when N. Orentreich [6] identified the concept of donor dominance and used free donor occipital grafts to areas of hair loss in patients with male pattern baldness. This concept remains the fundamental foundation for hair transplant success to this day and laid the groundwork for hair follicle harvesting, whether by strip technique (follicular unit transplant: FUT) or by follicular unit extraction (FUE).