Multi-unit hair grafting is new option for hair replacement

Oct 2006

Eyewitness News

Multi-unit hair grafting offers up to three times more density in one procedure. One local man took advantage of the new technology in hair replacement surgery.

Mike Lowe, 46, can see where he's heading thanks to computer imaging that predicts his hair loss. "If I can get some of this right through here thickened up and back here on the crown, especially for me, I'll be pretty happy," said Lowe.

At PAI Medical, doctors are pushing the industry past plugs. "When you have a lot of background hair, those large plugs looked okay because they were supplementing background hair but people didn't really think about what happens 20 years down the line when your background hair is gone and all you have left is the plugs.

That is what looks so terrible," said Dr. Greg Shannon.

Multi unit grafting is what Dr. Shannon used on Lowe. He established a new hairline first, then a front transition zone where more and smaller single unit graphs are placed. Next, he identified the follicles for transplant.

"What we do is we take it from across the back of the head. Here this extra lose hair that you have here kind of like a puppy scruff that is the extra skin we take that out and that is what we use," said Shannon.

Local anesthesia is used for the procedure. Lowe stays awake as the doctor cut a series of lines. The transplant is labor intensive. A team of four or five work just as many hours carefully handling scalp strips and separating hair follicles.

"There are actually four different sizes of graphs we use. We actually dissect out the individual hairs at this point and we use them in groups of one groups of two or longer liner multi unit graphs," said Shannon.

The payoff will take up to eight months for full results. Eyewitness News will check back with Lowe and show you his progress.