Anyone who has researched hair transplant surgery has probably heard of the ARTAS and NeoGraft. Simply put for those who are unfamiliar, the Artas and Neograft are devices meant to assist physicians with hair transplant surgery. These products claim to provide a minimally invasive procedure with a high graft extraction rate that produces a natural look.
Sounds great, right? But, upon further research and evaluation we see why hair transplant surgery by a machine may not yield the best results.
The NeoGraft utilizes an electrical power punch and suction to extract grafts. This is particularly concerning as this suction is believed by experienced hair transplant surgeons, including Dr. Yazdan, to damage the fragile hair follicles. If these follicles are damaged, they will not survive once transplanted. The power punch utilized by the NeoGraft is rather large compared to the hand held instruments developed by Dr. Yazdan, and a larger punch size means an increase in the risk of scarring.
The ARTAS is deemed to be the robotic method of hair transplantation. The device utilizes a computer and is very expensive for physicians and patients alike. According to FDA trials, the ARTAS showed no superiority to the hand held FUE method by an experienced hair transplant surgeon.
The most important thing to remember when researching your hair transplant surgery is to consider quality over quantity. Although you may hear claims of high graft extraction rates from the above devices, this number is irrelevant if the grafts do not survive due to damage. In addition, large punch size can cause scarring which negates one of the great things about the FUE method of hair transplant surgery which is minimal scarring. Here at Modena, Dr. Yazdan has developed his own hand tools to ensure the best results possible. If you’re interested in finding out more about his method, give us a call today.
Tag Archives: NeoGraft
How many grafts do you need for your hair transplant surgery?
This is a question that is often asked on the message boards and over the phone by potential patients. Unfortunately, this question cannot be answered without a consultation with an experienced hair transplant surgeon. The reason is: everyone’s case is different.
There are many factors that go into the graft number. The stage of hair loss, the quality of the donor area, the number of follicles that can be received from the donor area, the goals of the patient, and the medical history all play a role in the estimated graft number. During a consultation, the doctor can evaluate the scalp and these various factors and develop an estimated graft count for surgery.
Sometimes, a very high number of grafts is needed to achieve the patient’s goals. In this case, the doctor may suggest multiple surgeries.
An important thing to keep in mind when getting graft quotes from hair transplant surgeons, is that not all grafts are created equal. Some doctors (or machines) boast of high graft extraction numbers. Having an excessive amount of grafts is of no benefit if the grafts have been damaged during extraction (such as when they are suctioned out). Damaged grafts do no grow once transplanted.
If you would like to find out more about the hand extracted methods of surgery used at Modena Hair Center, give us a call today.
Is FUE Hair Transplant Scarless?
There has been a lot of conversation online and in advertising about FUE being a scarless hair transplant procedure. The answer is both Yes and No. Part of the reason for our answer is that it depends on the execution and experience of the surgeon. Recently Dr. Yazdan consulted with a patient in his Las Vegas hair transplant office who said he had 2000 FUE grafts at a local office that performed an FUE procedure with the NeoGraft Automated Hair Transplant System. He decided on NeoGraft because was told the procedure would be scarless. He also assumed that the Doctor would be performing the procedure. In both cases he was unfortunately wrong. The day of the procedure he discovered that medical technicians performed the procedure and he quickly learned that the donor area had significant scarring.
The issue of technicians performing hair transplant procedures has be addressed by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgeons (ISHRS.org) in their highly publicized consumer alert.
The reason for his scarring was because of poor technique. In this patient’s case the donor area was too small for 2000 grafts (although it appeared that less than 2000 grafts were performed.) so that the incisions were run together and were too deep. In addition the circular scalpel that extracted the grafts was too large – 1mm or larger. By running the incisions together the patient experienced both scarring and poor hair growth because many of the hair grafts were transected. The donor area was also high on the back of is head and could potentially be exposed if he continued to experience hair loss over time.
In order to improve the naturalness and density in the transplanted area Dr. Yazdan personally performed 1250 additional FUE grafts using his custom instrumentation and a .7mm diameter scalpel. The photo below shows the previous NeoGraft harvested donor area (Top) and the FUE grafts harvested by Dr. Yazdan (Below – day of surgery) which will appear virtually scarless because or the tiny incisions and proper spacing technique.
Below is the donor area of a FUE patient 30 days post-op.
NeoGraft, Artas and Other FUE Hair Transplant Systems
FOLLICULAR UNIT EXTRACTION (FUE) HAIR TRANSPLANT DEVICES
There has been a great deal of conversation online about the most effective procedure for performing a hair transplant procedure. In our Orange County & Las Vegas hair transplant offices we have had many patients come in for consultation that are confused by FUE, AlphaGraft, NeoGraft, Artas and other FUE hair transplant devices. That is correct, these are devices and not a surgical procedure.
In many cases patients believe that a NeoGraft hair transplant is a surgical technique when it is only a mechanized devices for performing FUE hair transplants. Simply put, follicular unit extraction involves removing tiny follicular bundles from the back of the scalp with a tiny .7-1mm circular punch. The incision is typically so small that there is no visible scar after the wound heals.
WHAT IS THE NEOGRAFT HAIR TRANSPLANT SYSTEM?
According to the company – NeoGraft is the first and only FDA cleared follicular unit harvesting and implantation system. The NeoGraft system delivers automation of the FUE technique. The above statement is true. the device, originally developed in Europe is combination electrical hand engine the powers a hollow circular punch and then sucks the hair graft into a container where the grafts are gathered and then implanted. Although the company has developed a device to also insert that grafts it is rarely used. The concern of many experienced hair surgeons including Dr. Yazdan is that the suction tears the tiny graft from the connecting fat tissue at the bottom and can tear or transact the graft which can significantly impact graft hair growth. There have also been concerns that in some cases the procedure with these devices is actually performed by unlicensed technicians for surgeons with little or no hair restoration experience. (Read more)
ARTAS ROBOTIC HAIR TRANSPLANT SYSTEM
Artas was launched in 2011 as the first robotic hair transplant system. The system is sophisticated, utilizing computer assistance to harvest hair follicles during the actual process of hair replacement. ARTAS incorporates a number of elements in its operation, including an image-guided robotic arm and special imaging technologies that co-ordinate together for the purpose of implementing the “follicular unit extraction (FUE)” technique upon the recipient of the system. The system is very expensive – approximately $200,000, cost more for physicians to use and to date has shown no superiority in hair graft quality from those of experienced hair surgeons using hand operated mechanized FUE devices. In FDA trials ARTAS showed no superiority to hand held follicular unit extraction by an experienced hair transplant surgeon.
IN OUR PRACTICE
Dr. Yazdan has developed his own instrumentation to assure the most precise results possible. He will modify his instrumentation to adapt to a specific patients hair type and angle of hair growth. The important issue for patients to understand is that follicular unit extraction (FUE) is a procedure and that everything else is a reference to a device that helps the physician extract the follicular units. Many surgeons use different devices to perform excellent FUE results and the important part is the surgical expertise and care of the grafts once harvested that assures optimal results for the patient.
Below is a video of Dr. Yazdan performing the procedure.
