Despite the Fancy Name, FUE Robotic Hair Transplantation Amazes our California Clients
FUE (Follicular Unit Extraction) is the fancy name for our robotic hair transplant system using the ARTAS robot. 
Hairs are also known as follicles and a follicular unit is a group of between one and four follicles. These are extracted from one part of the head and transplanted into another, but in the case of a FUE transplant in California it is done by a robot. Yes, a robot!
Going back not so very many years it was known – and still is – as a Follicular Unit Transplant, and the way that it worked was with the surgeon removing a strip of hair from the back of the head and dividing that strip up into units of one to four hairs which he then individually transplanted into the recipient site on the head by hand. As you can imagine, you need a very steady hand for that kind of procedure.
Now there are a number of disadvantages to an FUT transplant, not the least of which is that it leaves a nasty scar on the back of the head where the strip of hairs was removed. That’s OK if you wear your hair long, but not nearly so OK if you want to wear it short. In a sense, it is almost like walking around saying “Look at me. I’ve had a hair transplant”!
Another disadvantage is how long a transplant can take. If a surgeon is working manually, he is going to tire over the course of what can be several hours, and so he will naturally make some mistakes. That can mean that some of the transplanted hairs do not grow properly or may grow at a different angle from other existing hairs in the area.
Our Robot Doesn’t Get Tired
An FUE transplant in California, on the other hand, is done by a robot programmed by the surgeon, and that robot is not going to get tired. The only thing that could stop it is if the power goes down. We’re lucky to be one of the best-in-class hair transplant clinics here in the Peninsula region of the Bay Area that has an actual ARTAS robot.
What is even better is that in an FUE transplant in California, the robot doesn’t cut away a strip of hair. Rather it removes tiny follicular units of between one and four hairs and transplants them as a unit. This leaves no visible scar whatsoever at the back of the head. The robot also transplants the hair at exactly the same angle, elevation, and direction of existing hair in the recipient site giving an exact match.
At Silicon Valley Hair Institute, we have clinics in both Foster City and Palo Alto, so we can cover the whole of the San Francisco Bay Area. Our Dr Canales is happy to provide a totally free consult, so book an appointment to see him.
