Bernstein Medical Blog

This page contains all posts in our News, Answers, Video, and Research sections.

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Can A Hair Transplant Completely Replace My Lost Hair?

May 15th, 2014

Q: I have a significant amount of hair loss. Can a hair transplant make me look exactly the way I did before I lost my hair? — V.S., Fairfield, C.T.

A: In most cases, the answer is no. All surgical hair restoration procedures move hair – they cannot create new hair. Specifically, surgical hair transplantation takes existing hair from the donor area (located in the back and on the sides of the scalp) and moves (transplants) them to the part of the scalp that has lost hair. It is usually the case that there is not enough hair in one’s donor area to replace all lost hair. That said, in persons with extensive hair loss, the restoration can often produce a dramatic improvement in one’s appearance.

How Is Robotic FUE Different At Bernstein Medical?

May 13th, 2014

Q: How is robotic FUE different at Bernstein Medical compared to other practices?

A: The ARTAS robot assists in the first part of the follicular unit extraction procedure: separating the follicular unit from the surrounding tissue. The rest of the hair restoration procedure is done manually. Once follicular units are removed from the scalp they need to be trimmed prior to implantation, recipient sites need to be created, and the grafts must be placed in them – a time consuming, delicate process.

Because we are highly skilled in microscopic dissection, we are able to produce the highest quality grafts. In addition, all the other aspect of the procedure, including the long-term planning and design will be performed with the same high standards. With respect to the actual robot at Bernstein Medical, we use smaller instruments that result in less wounding to the scalp, it promotes faster healing time, and it improves the appearance of the donor area. We also have our computer programed to select the larger follicular units to obtain more hair with less wounds (holes) in the donor area – ultimately achieving a better cosmetic result.

Can A Hair Transplant Damage Existing Hair Follicles In A Thinning Area?

May 8th, 2014

Q: My hair is thinning, but I’ve been told I have too much existing hair to warrant a hair transplant. I heard that transplanting new hair into my thinned areas will lead to a loss of existing hair follicles. I was told to delay a hair transplant procedure until my density has further decreased. Is this true? — M.S., Maple Glen, P.A.

A: It is possible that you simply don’t need a hair transplant at this time one. If you have early thinning, it may be best treated with medication, or not at all. As you age, we will have a better idea of your thinning pattern and, at that time, a hair transplant may be more appropriate.

A hair transplant does not cause loss of hair follicles in the recipient area. The procedure may cause a temporary “shock” loss of the hair. Shock hair loss is a physiologic response to the trauma to the scalp which is caused by a hair transplant. Hair that is healthy is going to come back after some period of time – generally 6 months. Hair that may be near the end of its lifespan may not return. When a hair transplant is performed at the proper time, in the proper candidate, shock hair loss should just be an incidental issue.

Can You Transplant More Grafts With Robotic FUE Or Manual FUE?

May 7th, 2014

Q: Is robotic FUE different in the number of follicular unit grafts one can extract compared to manual FUE? — R.V., Stamford, CT

A: We can extract (and transplant) the same number of follicular unit grafts robotically as we can manually.

The goal of a hair transplant is not to simply transplant as many grafts as possible but to achieve the best possible cosmetic result given the number of hair follicles in your donor reserve. Remember, this is always a limited supply.

While there is no difference between robotic and manual FUE in terms of the number of follicular unit grafts that each can extract, robotic FUE does differ from manual FUE in several important ways.

First, there is generally less transection of the hair follicles with robotic FUE, since the method is more precise. This enables us to obtain follicular units with less trauma to the grafts.

Second, while the robot is not necessarily faster than the human surgeon, the robot is much more consistent since, unlike the human surgeon, it never fatigues and the accuracy is maintained throughout the entire procedure.

Evolution of FUE Instrumentation: From Hand-held Punch to Robotic Extraction

May 5th, 2014

Dr. Bernstein discusses how FUE instrumentation has evolved from the hand held follicular unit extraction punch to automated robotic follicular extraction.

How Does the ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant System Locate and Dissect Follicular Units?

April 28th, 2014

The ARTAS Robotic System uses a small, window-like device called a tensioner to help hold the scalp in place and to help guide the 3D optical technology that locates and extracts follicular units.

What Are The Benefits Of Pre-making Recipient Sites For Hair Transplants?

April 24th, 2014

Pre-making recipient sites has several advantages including less bleeding and less risk of injury to the grafts during placement. Allow the recipient sites to heal a bit before placing the grafts also helps them to grow.

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How Long Do Stitches Stay in After a Hair Transplant?

April 21st, 2014

Q: I’ve heard that healing after a hair transplant requires stitches. How long will they stay in? — S.R., Cresskill, N.J.

A: In a follicular unit hair transplant, the surgeon removes a thin strip of scalp from the patient’s donor area that supplies the follicular unit grafts for the hair transplant. After the strip is removed we use either sutures (stitches) or staples to close the wound. We now close most wounds in the donor area with staples, rather than sutures, because we have found that staples cause less injury to the remaining hair follicles compared to sutures; therefore, more hair will be available for future hair restoration sessions. See Why We Changed from Sutures to Staples in FUT Hair Transplants.

Going Bald. Do You Perform a Test for LPP (Lichen Planopilaris)?

April 2nd, 2014

Q: Hi Dr. Bernstein, I am a 30 year old man with a balding crown. I’m 99.9% sure its male pattern baldness (I’m currently on Propecia and Rogaine). I recently read about how people going bald are getting tested for LPP (lichen planopilaris). Do you perform this test? — F.L., Scarsdale, NY

A: Lichen Planopilaris (believed to be a type of autoimmune disease) occurs more frequently in women than in men and more commonly in African-Americans than in Caucasians. The variation that could be confused with androgenic alopecia in men is central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (or CCCA). While definitive testing would involve a scalp biopsy, this is rarely necessary as the doctor can easily tell by just examining you with the naked eye using magnification (densitometry).

Robotic Hair Transplant Part 3: Graft Harvesting

April 1st, 2014

In Part 3 of our video series on Robotic FUE hair transplants, Dr. Bernstein narrates as he and his team first prepare the patient for graft harvesting and then conduct the follicular unit extraction process using the ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant System.

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