Get the Facts on FUE: A Revolutionary Treatment for Baldness

Up to 40% of men will have significant hairloss by the time they’re 35 years old. They’ll notice receding hair lines, or thinning spots in the center or side. Many of them feel that they’re not just losing their hair but their confidence. They associate baldness with looking old and less attractive.

Get treatment from a Singapore hair expert

If you start seeing baldness, don’t waste your time and money in thickening shampoos or “hair hacks” you see on the Internet. The first step is to go to a Singapore clinic like Clifford where a trained professional can diagnose the root cause. Hair loss can be caused by nutrient deficiencies, hormones, side effects of medication and stress. These can be treated and managed with appropriate medications and lifestyle or diet changes.

Sometimes hair loss hereditary, or what’s called androgenetic alopecia or male pattern baldness. The bad news is that this is permanent. The good news is that the Clifford Clinic has an effective solution: hair transplants.

FUE: the latest hair transplant technology

Hair transplants and treatments have evolved over the decades. The most revolutionary treatment is FUE or Follicular Unit Extraction. It involves removing hair follicles and then grafting them on to the section that is balding. This is how it works:

• The area where follicles will be harvested is cleaned and numbed with a local anesthetic.
• A special vacuum harvests the follicular unit (or groups of hair).
• These are transplanted into the balding area, based on transplant sites that have already been marked and incised.

How is FUE different from other hair transplants?

There are two ways to “harvest” a hair follicle. FUE relocates entire follicular units individually, and then inserts them into previously incised grafting sites. The units are removed with a special circular vacuum and punch. It does not involve scalpels and will not require sutures.

The second type of grafting is strip excision. Here, skin is actually cut from the donor area with a scalpel.

Benefits of FUE hair transplants

The FUE technology is already becoming one of the most popular hair loss treatments in the world. The reason lies in its benefits:

• No scars. Strip harvesting leaves a visible linear scar. FUE leaves no marks, so it is ideal for people who want to have short hair.
• Faster healing. Since FUE does not need scalpel or sutures, you have less down time. You can drive home a few hours after the procedure, and can return to your regular activity after a few days. By the tenth day you can already engage in even strenuous physical activity.
• Minimal side effects. While you do need to home with a bandage, you can remove this after a day. There is only some swelling and puffiness but this subsides after a few days. Bruising is not common. Cases of 300 grafts can be done with almost no downtime at all.
• Less painful. Patients only experience mild discomfort after the procedure, which can be managed with analgesics.
• Less risk. It is less invasive and has less risks than strip extractions. Only a local anesthesia is required (similar to the one used when you have dental treatments). Risk for infection is really low, and generally caused by patient factors like smoking.
• Looks natural. The transplanted hairs are your own, and merge and blend with the surrounding hair. Nobody will ever know that you had a hair transplant!
• Larger harvesting area. Do you have limited hair that can be transplanted? The FUE technique can use hair from the beard, chest or abdomen.
• Good success rate. On average 80-90% of transplanted hairs will grow.

Are you a good candidate for a hair transplant?

Ideally you have healthy hair growth at the back or sides of your head, or what hair experts call “donor areas.” Also consider that the texture, density, color and curliness of the hair will affect how the transplant will look.

Your doctor will also look at your case and see how many grafts you may need to meet your expectations. Part of the pre-surgery assessment includes:

• Scalp palpations that check how elastic your skin is
• Density measurements of your hair on the different areas of your scalp
• Counting of telogen hairs, to help target areas that have a higher risk for balding

This assessment is done with special tools that can show the thickness and quality of your hair in both the donor area (where the hair will be harvested) and recipient area (where the hair will be planted). It can help give you a clear idea of what results you can expect, including factors like future hair loss projections and factors that can affect the success of the procedure.

What happens during a FUE transplant?

The first step is a simple “haircut”. Hair will be shaved and taken from the sides or the nape. If only a little hair is required the doctor may shave just thin strips of hair from beneath. Since your longer hair will hide the shaved area, your appearance won’t be drastically changed.

You will be given a local anesthesia so you won’t feel any pain. Then, a micropunch – with a diameter of less than .9 millimeters — extracts hair follicles. This penetrates only the scalp and doesn’t touch the deeper skin tissues, so there’s no risk of heavy bleeding.

The next step is transplanting. Using a microblade, he creates canals that are the right width and depth for each follicle. The canals are just a few millimeters wide and will not leave any visible scar.

Your head will be bandaged and you will be able to go home after a few hours. You may experience minor swelling but this will subside within a few days. Discomfort is mild and can be managed with over-the-counter painkillers.

Trust only a trained and qualified Singapore hair expert!

FUE is a surgical technique, so it should only be carried out by an experienced, skilled and certified Singapore professional. That’s why it’s important to go to a credible Singapore clinic like Clifford. It has successfully handled over 2000 cases and have the appropriate training and experience in FUE hair transplant.

Going to an inexperienced clinic can have devastating results. For example, it’s very important that the hair grafts survive. Improper technique will lead to patchy and mangy areas that show the areas that “didn’t take.” It actually looks worse than being bald!

“It takes a good technician more than 500 cases to pick up the art of handling the grafts quickly and delicately. Quickly so that the grafts don’t dry out and lose their viability. Delicately so that they aren’t crushed in the process of being quick,” says Dr. Ee. The Clifford Clinic’s current hair technician has been performing hair grafts for 10 years. “She is both fast and good, knows the ins and outs of transplantation and all the secret techniques that make or break the procedure and ensure highest graft survival rate.”

Get a complete approach to hair growth

Male pattern and female pattern hair loss is a progressive disease. You will continue to lose hair even after your transplant.

The Clifford Clinic also works with you after the treatment to maintain healthy hair growth. With the Clifford Clinic Hair Care program you’ll be given advice on what hair care products to use, medicines or supplements you may need to take, and how to avoid any unnecessary damage to the scalp or hair. This way ,you can take a proactive and clinically sound approach to managing hair loss.

Tested technology combined with expertise

The Clifford Clinic has also had years of experience in hair transplants and knows which treatments really work. For example, Dr. Ee was one of the first to invest in ARTAS, the robotic hair transplant system. “The robot was amazing, and watching it work was simply mesmerizing. However, as time went on, I realized that technology has its limitations. Some types of scalp just would not give a good yield of quality grafts. For this reason, we chose to rely on traditional non-robotic machines.”

You want to go to a clinic that has researched and tested the technology and can give you what really works. The Clifford Clinic’s experience in Singapore hair transplants lets them know what is best to use for each situation to get the best results.

A deep and proven commitment to customer care

Hair transplants are a very specialized treatment that comes with risks, pros and cons. Beware of Singapore hair clinics or products that claim that they can give you a 100% guarantee that your hair will grow back. They are not being completely transparent with you. You may think you’re getting a “cheaper or effective deal” but you end up being disappointed and misled.

That’s why it’s important to go to a clinic that is reputable and honest. Dr. Ee believes it is important to communicate with all clients and give clear, clinically-based facts. During your personal consultation, he will examine your case, diagnose the problem, and help you review your options. He will explain the costs, benefits, risks, and success rate of the hair transplant based on your particular situation.

For Dr Ee, it is about ethics and protecting the trust and reputation. “As a doctor with more than 10 years of practice in Aesthetic Medicine, I have come to the realization that results are everything.”

Ask The Clifford Clinic about FUE hair transplants

Do you have any questions about balding or thinning hair? Do you want to find out if FUE is the best treatment for your hair loss, or if there are other alternatives you can consider?

Schedule a personal consultation with Dr. Ee and The Clifford Clinic. To get your one-on-one appointment, just call (65) 6532 2400 or send an email to thecliffordclinic@gmail.com. You can also check their FAQ on hair transplants, based on the questions they have received from their patients.