Nonshaven Follicular Unit Extraction: Personal Experience

Nonshaven follicular unit extraction (NS-FUE) is the most state-of-the-art surgical technique in the field of follicular unit hair transplantation. It is particularly appealing because donor area shaving, one of the most serious impediments for the patient, can be omitted. In this article, we present our surgical approach for NS-FUE. We selectively used the direct or the pretrimming method of NS-FUE according to indication, determined by considering the location and purpose of transplantation, the condition of the recipient site, and the patient's preference. A total of 658 patients underwent NS-FUE. Of these, 17 had pubic atrichia, 2 had pubic atrichia and also received hairline correction surgery, 6 received eyebrow transplantation, 19 had female pattern hair loss, 362 had male pattern baldness (MPB), 2 had MPB and also required eyebrow transplantation, 3 received hair transplantation for MPB and scalp scar, 9 underwent male hairline correction surgery, 192 underwent female hairline surgery, and 46 received hair transplantation for scalp scar. The average numbers of transplanted grafts were 573 for atrichia, 1300 for atrichia and hairline correction performed successively, 240 for eyebrow transplantation, 996 for female pattern hair loss, 1408 for MPB (with a maximum of 3000), 1050 for MPB and eyebrow transplantation, 998 for female pattern hair loss (with a maximum of 1910), and 141 for scalp scar. On average, the total transection rate was 8.2%, and the calculated density was 2.2.