Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 15, 2015 Share Posted June 15, 2015 (edited) A demonstration as to how FUE causes traction damage to the grafts and a few suggestions on how to minimize it, or avoid it completely. Dr. Blake Bloxham Dr. Alan Feller Great Neck, NY 516-487-3797 Edited June 15, 2015 by Blake_Bloxham Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member TakingThePlunge Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 Very interesting and informative! David - Former Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant I am not a medical professional. All opinions are my own and my advice should not constitute as medical advice. View my Hair Loss Website Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member mav23100gunther Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 Thank you very much Dr Feller & Dr Bloxham. Very very informative video once again, and seems to make a lot of sense. No doubt now we are experiencing a little quiet before the storm when all the haters are going to start chiming in. I can't wait for someone to comment on the way you were initially holding that plastic strip though - but I will defer the 1st thought that popped into my head. Bad hair day there Dr. Feller? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ontop Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 Good sample there guys well done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 15, 2015 Author Share Posted June 15, 2015 Bad hair day for sure. We didn't plan that video or rehearse it at all. We just did it and it fell into place. I had been moving some stuff around the office just prior and my hair got messed up. But at least I have hair with which to have a "bad hair day". Not bad for a stage 6, eh?! The force I used to snap that plastic is proportionate to that used during some FUE extractions. While I obviously don't have to pull that hard, the tissue is likewise not nearly as strong. So in the end I doubt this demonstration is far off from reality. I did't even realize until we were shooting the video that you could actually see the lines of traction developing throughout the plastic pseudo follicle. It was quite telling. That's when I had the idea to draw two follicles on the plastic and see what would happen. Pretty devistating and likely explains most of the disparity in yield between strip and FUE. My perforation method helps, but obviously not as good as mFUE technique. There are some FUE patients in whom the grafts come out with almost no fight. But some are so bad there is no way to avoid tearing the follicle literally in half as you saw in this demonstration. Thank you for the comment, and you to "Ontop". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member lorenzo Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 Dr. Feller There are three different type of people you are explaining to. 1) Posters that understand what you are saying and agree with you. 2) Posters that aren't sure but are open minded to what you are explaining. These posters can be convinced as long as the facts are correct and they fully understand it 3) Posters that no matter how you explain it will never agree with you. Even if they think you are correct they will never say it. I agree with what you are explaining. I am not convinced about the MFUE but I am open minded once I see high quality photos and have a better understanding my opinion may change. Representative for Hasson & Wong. Dr. Victor Hasson and Dr. Jerry Wong are esteemed members of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians. My opinions are my own and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Hasson & Wong. My Hair Loss Website - Hair Transplant with Dr. Hasson Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Blake Bloxham Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 If this whole HT thing doesn't work out, I think we have a future as YouTube "celebrities" ; ) "Doc" Blake Bloxham - formerly "Future_HT_Doc" Forum Co-Moderator and Editorial Assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, the Hair Loss Learning Center, the Hair Loss Q&A Blog, and the Hair Restoration Forum All opinions are my own and my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ontop Posted June 15, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 15, 2015 Aslong you don't cut off Dr Feller fingers other than that stick to your day job Ha ha. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Wwiizzkkiidd24 Posted June 16, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 16, 2015 Nice presentation on what came sometimes happen with fue and traction/ripping of the follicle. Theres no way around it doing fue unless as you two docs explained get a needle and pin prick through the tissue. But i bet thats really time comsuming. and wouldnt be of benifit to the patient ir the surgeon or anyone taking out the follicle. Surely there must be a another way around it.. Couldnt you have some sort of tiny scaple that goes down the shaft of a munual punch attached to a spring in the shaft where the doctors holding and the spring attached to some sort of botton mechanism that you press down on to make the tiny scaple sort of perferate the tissue underneath the follicle and then tear the follicle out. Amd if you wanted to get technical you could add a tube into the manual punch that sucks the hair follicle out of the skin(once the scaple has perferated it)through the device(manual punch) and into a dish full of whatever substance a doctor would choose so the hair follicle doesnt get exposed to oxygen(bit like dr wesleys idea with pyloscopy). Im sorry if that doesnt make any sence to you but it made sence in my head haha. if you would like me to draw a picture for better understanding i could do that but my drawing is just as good as my trying to explain an idea i thought of in the morning. Just a warning haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Wwizzz, Great thinking. I truly mean that. Few people can imagine what you just did, so I am VERY impressed. You are inventive. And that's just a thought you had in the morning?! You may have quite a gift. Actually, I received a patent on exactly what you are talking about. I'll post it later. There were some problems with it, however. But I would seriously like to talk with you because if you can come up with that apparatus without performing the procedures first hand you have the kind of mind I like to know. PM me if you are interested in throwing any other ideas around. If nothing else it is an excellent mental exercise. Dr. Feller Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ontop Posted June 16, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 16, 2015 Dr F, While we all start to burn our brains on our pillows instead of counting sheep LOL Is it possible to get hair folicals via the back door so to speak? What I'm trying to say is can't you make a tiny slit under the scalp & drag out folicals using a key hole surgery way? That way the folicals should be in tact & no ear to ear scar. Is that even possible? Has this been even tested? Just a thought. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Wwiizzkkiidd24 Posted June 16, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 16, 2015 Wwizzz,Great thinking. I truly mean that. Few people can imagine what you just did, so I am VERY impressed. You are inventive. And that's just a thought you had in the morning?! You may have quite a gift. Actually, I received a patent on exactly what you are talking about. I'll post it later. There were some problems with it, however. But I would seriously like to talk with you because if you can come up with that apparatus without performing the procedures first hand you have the kind of mind I like to know. PM me if you are interested in throwing any other ideas around. If nothing else it is an excellent mental exercise. Dr. Feller Thanks dr. Feller. It was just a spare of moment idea to be honest. i was looking at the CIT hair transplant tools and saw a manual punch and thought why not add what i mentioned to it . Im just trying to get my head around how the scaple would perforate the tissue underneath the follicle. The rest seems pretty simple.which is why it would be cool to see the tool you received a patent for and see what problems you came across with it. Maybe i could throw some ideas at you and see what you think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Ontop: That's good thinking but it has been tried by several doctors with no practical results. The problem with that approach is that it takes an awful lot of time to get the grafts out. Also, it included the introduction of a long and fairly wide tool, like say pencil size, being slid under the scalp in the deeper layers. This can introduce a massive infection under the skin that can actually turn into a deadly bone infection. I wouldn't mess with it. Really deep thinking though. Isn't that more fun than counting sheep? When I go to bed I'm always trying to imagine new ways to do things. Wwizz, I will post the patent illustration on this topic in a little bit. Love to get your input thereafter; yours as well Ontop if you care to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ontop Posted June 16, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 16, 2015 (edited) Thanks Dr F, Thought that would have been tested over the yrs. I have another idea & you of all people going through Med School yrs ago is maybe in your next video is to use a fruit like a apple, or a tommato with a bunch of cocktail sticks as folicals showing how & why this Mfue is done on a scalp what size of tools used blah blah. Do that bring you back in the days Doc using a needle & cotton aproach on a. piece of fruit blah blah Haha. Okay tonight I'm counting sheep LOL Edited June 16, 2015 by ontop edit Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 16, 2015 Author Share Posted June 16, 2015 Here are photos of the invention we spoke about Wwizz. The patent issued in 2007, but I applied for it years before. The suction part is pretty self evident. However, the perforation part is a bit more complicated. You will see the little spikes that slide up and down the punch. So the doctor scores around with the punch in the usual fashion and then sends the spikes down deeper into the skin to perforate around the target graft much as in the video above with the plastic. When traction is applied the graft tears free with much less traction and damage. I demonstrated this to Dr. Walter Unger when I showed him his first live FUE transplant in my office. That's why he put me in the 4th edition of his textbook. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member ontop Posted June 16, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 16, 2015 Dr F That makes sense as the less traction the less stress the folical will have & a higher chance of yeild. Is this tool not being used today? If not why not? It could be a way forward using this new method. Hmmmm interesting indeed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member Wwiizzkkiidd24 Posted June 17, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 17, 2015 Thanks doc. Nice bit of apparatus that but a little bit different to what i was thinking(needles/scalple)but none the less looks like it could reduce traction on the follicle with the needles being employed. So how does the needles go about perforating the tissue? Does the needle go past the follicle into the fatty tissue so you got more chance of the tissue being ripped out then the follicle its self? Or have i got that wrong... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted June 20, 2015 Author Share Posted June 20, 2015 Wwizz You have that exactly right. The punch scores down about half way down, sometimes a bit more, and then stopped. Then the perforating needles continue down into the fat. The way I designed it you slde down a ring containing 4 perforation spikes, then pull it up, rotate it a few degrees, then send it down again for more perforating. Then you grab the graft (compression unfortunately) and pull. The surrounding tissue will tear away before significant tension can be placed on the body of the follicle. But you don't need the apparatus. You can just take one needle, hold the graft under mild to moderate tension, and then slide the needle down and blindly poke down. After about two or three pokes the graft comes free with far less damage. The reason you don't see this technique being used in any of the automated "high tech" systems is because I patented it. Actually, two patents on the system. They knew not to touch it. I'll dig up video of this and post it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member HairJo Posted June 21, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted June 21, 2015 I liked the video it was refreshing to see 2 doctors dressed casual and interacting with one another just 2 regular guys it was fun and easy to understand thanks for the human side I'm looking forward to seeing more videos . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Alan Feller Posted July 19, 2015 Author Share Posted July 19, 2015 Thank you HairJo, more videos are coming. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Blake Bloxham Posted July 19, 2015 Share Posted July 19, 2015 HairJo, "regular," "casual" guys ... this is definitely our style! Glad you like it too! Dr. Blake Bloxham is recommended by the Hair Transplant Network. Hair restoration physician - Feller and Bloxham Hair Transplantation Previously "Future_HT_Doc" or "Blake_Bloxham" - forum co-moderator and editorial assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, Hair Restoration Network, Hair Loss Q&A blog, and Hair Loss Learning Center. Click here to read my previous answers to hair loss and hair restoration questions, editorials, commentaries, and educational articles. Now practicing hair transplant surgery with Coalition hair restoration physician Dr Alan Feller at our New York practice: Feller and Bloxham Hair Transplantation. Please note: my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Regular Member jason5 Posted July 19, 2015 Regular Member Share Posted July 19, 2015 Thanks for the videinfo. I thought, wouldnt small drops of botox make the small muscle around the scalp relax a bit and therefor reduce tension during the process? If that plan works out, how much money would you donate to my bank account for my brilliance? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Senior Member HairJo Posted July 20, 2015 Senior Member Share Posted July 20, 2015 Good thoughts it sounds like you might be on to something very interesting concept. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr Blake Bloxham Posted July 20, 2015 Share Posted July 20, 2015 Jason, Haha. Love it. However, the tissue that really grips on to the FUE grafts and won't let go isn't muscle. It's more fat, dermis, and a few glands. Though technically there is one small muscle involved -- though it's cut during scoring. However, I will make sure to cut you in if we do experiment with your Botox method in the future ; ) Dr. Blake Bloxham is recommended by the Hair Transplant Network. Hair restoration physician - Feller and Bloxham Hair Transplantation Previously "Future_HT_Doc" or "Blake_Bloxham" - forum co-moderator and editorial assistant for the Hair Transplant Network, Hair Restoration Network, Hair Loss Q&A blog, and Hair Loss Learning Center. Click here to read my previous answers to hair loss and hair restoration questions, editorials, commentaries, and educational articles. Now practicing hair transplant surgery with Coalition hair restoration physician Dr Alan Feller at our New York practice: Feller and Bloxham Hair Transplantation. Please note: my advice does not constitute as medical advice. All medical questions and concerns should be addressed by a personal physician. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Diran Posted August 8, 2020 Share Posted August 8, 2020 (edited) Hair loss and thinning are a normal part of aging, but they can also occur due to a disease or injury to the scalp. Some people who experience hair loss may choose to have a hair transplant for cosmetic or reconstructive reasons. So,yeah, thanks for this informative video! Or, on the contrary there are those who have hair in abundance and they need to get rid of it permanently. That's where laser hair removal comes in. My friend recently did so and said it was totally worth it. If anyone needs this is the site https://www.seattleplasticsurgery.com/laser-hair-removal-specials/. Edited August 16, 2020 by Diran Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now