What You Need to Know About ARTAS and NeoGraft

ARTAS and NEOGRAFT

There are two different techniques in harvesting hair from the donor area. One is the strip method or FUT and the other is the punch method or FUE. Basically, Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) is a revival of the old punch technique obtaining donor hair with a small circular cutting instrument. While ARTAS and Neograft are aggressively being promoted to the public as the superior technique for performing hair transplants, they work by actually performing the extraction of hair grafts through the FUE technique. These two devises are different instruments used in the market to do FUE extraction siding punches to harvest follicular units one at a time from the donor area for harvesting the grafts.

Neograft was introduced about 5 years ago, and is a machine that a physician or a technician uses to perform the follicular unit extraction (FUE) procedure. Neograft has done tremendous amount of marketing in the past years to present itself as a new technique in hair transplantation. However, it is simply not a new technique but a machine that is used to harvest grafts from the donor site. These machines are usually used and sold to physicians who have never done a hair transplant and have no experience in any aspects of hair transplantation. Usually Neograft appears on a long list of other procedures that a doctor performs, and it is likely that the surgeon is not specialized in hair transplant and is doing it as a side job. It has a motorized hand held circular punch that is attached to a suction tube. Its large circular tip contributes to collateral damage of the surrounding hair and some burial of the grafts during the extraction stage. It is more reliant on a human to extract the hair from the donor site. Therefore, most Neograft doctors hire a Neograft technician to perform the procedure not only in the harvesting part but also to oversee the design and incision making of the recipient sites. This means that minimal input is required of the surgeon into both harvesting and making the incisions for the recipient area. It should be noted that the involvement of an experienced and specialized hair transplant doctor is critical in terms of achieving natural appearing results.

ARTAS is also another machine that utilizes computer technology to guide the device in the removing of each graft by itself. It is used to extract hair from the donor site using the FUE technique. It facilitates the extraction stage of the FUE, however it is associated with graft burial during this stage. Due to its larger tip, there may be some collateral damage to the surrounding hairs as well, which will limit the number of hair available for extraction in the donor area. This larger tip also contributes to larger circular scaring in the donor area. This machine also ensures minimal involvement of the physician in the harvesting of the grafts.

Both of these machines have some advantages in that they help speed up the graft extraction process in the FUE technique. However, the use of these devices does not assure an aesthetic result. Like all other cosmetic procedure, hair transplantation results are largely dependent on the design, distribution and the artistic ability of the hair transplant specialist. Donor harvesting whether using Neograft or ARTAS is one part of hair transplant surgery, the other part is the design and graft distribution into the recipient site. The extraction of the hair from the donor area has nothing to do with how the hair will look in the recipient area. The recipient area is another aspect of the hair transplant that should be discussed and planed out in detail before moving forward with the procedure. So it is very important to choose an experienced doctor both for harvesting of the grafts and also for design and placement of grafts to the recipient area and discuss the options in detail to ensure optimal result that would meet your expectations.

Dr. Mike Meshkin, a hair transplant specialist based in Los Angeles and Orange County offers many advises to his clients about the #hairtransplant procedures.

To find out more about your hair loss, visit one of Dr. Meshkin's hair transplant and #hairrestoration clinics in Los Angeles or in Irvine locations. Dr. Meshkin will use the latest techniques to find out the cause of your hair loss and give the best hair restoration recommendation that is customized to your needs and concerns.

If you are suffering from hair loss or hair thinning you can contact us at (949) 219-0027 to schedule for a free consultation or visit our website at www.MeshkinMedical.com.