Difference Between FUT (Strip Method) and FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction)

What’s the difference between the Strip method and FUE (follicular unit extraction) for getting the donor hair?

First and most importantly, I make sure my patients understand the greatest limit to any hair transplantation is that there is a fixed and limited amount of good genetic hair that we can transfer to the balding areas.

With that in mind, I explain that no matter how experienced the surgeon, when I remove the donor area with either method, I am removing it blindly (i.e. – I can not see under the skin until after the donor tissue is removed). The problem is that I can not see if the follicles have been damaged or transected until after it’s been removed. So it’s best to have as little tissue as possible exposed to any device removing the tissue.

With the strip method, we minimize the amount of donor area being exposed to the risk of damaging hair follicles while obtaining the donor hair. With F.U.E., the patient no longer runs the risk of having a linear scar on the back of their scalp, but there is a significant increase in the amount of surface area being blindly dissected and with that a significant increase in potential damage to the hair follicles.

While I use both methods to obtain donor hair, I make sure the patient understands the risks and implications of both and I help the patient make an educated decision.

Paul J. McAndrews, MD
Senior Medical Advisor, IAHRS

Paul J. McAndrews, MD Paul J. McAndrews, M.D. is a Clinical Instructor of Dermatology at the USC School of Medicine, teaching the residents the latest advances in hair loss and transplantations. Dr. McAndrews also lectures extensively to other physicians throughout the United States on the etiology and treatment of hair loss. Dr. McAndrews has a private practice located in both Pasadena and Beverly Hills, CA. Unlike most hair transplant surgeons, Dr. McAndrews was formally trained in a residency on hair transplants and the pathophysiology of hair loss. Dr. McAndrews formally learned the art of hair restorations during his dermatology residency at the distinguished USC/LAC Medical Center. He was honored with the distinction of Chief Resident. He also received years of professional training under the mentorship of Dr. M.B. Corbett, who is known as one of the early "pioneers in the field of hair restorations". In 1996, Dr. Corbett asked Dr. McAndrews to join him as a partner in his practice. Dr. McAndrews has since taken over Dr. Corbett's practice that was limited to the field of hair restorations. Dr. McAndrews is the senior medical advisor of the International Alliance of Hair Restoration Surgeons and recommended by the American Hair Loss Association. Visit Dr. McAndrew's Website: www.hairgrowthdoctor.com

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