In a new study published in the journal, Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery- Global Open, Dr. Sanusi Umar Advances FUE for African-Mixed Patients.

(Black PR Wire) For years, individuals of African descent seeking linear scar free follicular unit extraction (FUE) hair transplants have to undergo pre-testing only to be turned away by hair transplant surgeons using the traditional methods. The challenges to FUE posed by African type hair (tight curly hair, texture, and tissue characteristics) causes a high failure rate that makes many hair restoration surgeons shy away and offer individuals of African descent only linear scar causing hair transplant methods. For men and women who want to wear their hair short, the linear scar tells the world they have had hair restoration surgery.

Using the latest addition to his patented UGraft® equipment, called the UPunch Curl™, the 18 patients studied experienced 100% success. The finding suggests no pre-testing is required prior to FUE hair transplant surgery. The challenge to traditional FUE methods of hair transplantation in persons with Afro-textured hair is the poor graft / hair viability that is caused by an increased graft damage rate during surgery. Using conventional FUE methods, the damage rate can be as high as 80%. In the new study by Dr. Umar (DrU) using the newly invented UPunch Curl, most patients had a graft damage rate of less than 5% of grafts. Even in the most extreme cases of diseased and scarred scalps from a condition called acne keloidalis nuchae (AKN), the graft damage rate did not exceed 10%. A “Yes” for all patients involved. www.dru.com

The UPunch Curl™ was also compared to other conventional rotary punch tools used in the FUE method. The significantly superior graft damage rates observed with the UPunch Curl™ is attributed to its unique design, which accommodates the curliness of the hair. The UPunch Curl™ allows FUE from individual hair follicles rather than from a removed strip of tissue that may waste hair follicles, now a problem of the past.

Dr. Umar notes that “patients with the most tightly curled hair are of African descent, but these individuals are not a homogenous group, with variability in degree of curliness between groups from different countries. Variations also exist in the same individual when hair is taken from different scalp regions. All of these variations reflect either ethnic mixing …that has occurred over generations as well as genetic variations. This technique now allows these individuals to undergo hair transplantation while minimizing the poor outcomes associated with the traditional FUE method. While this initial study evaluated only 18 patients from various Geo-ethnic backgrounds, I believe that the findings point the way to a universal approach in FUE for people with tightly curled Afro-textured hair.”

Regardless of ethnicity, through this new approach to FUE it is possible to restore hair loss that results from the more common genetics as well as repair of poorly executed surgeries from the past. UGraft Revolution and UPunch Curl are currently only available from the inventor Dr Sanusi Umar. According to Dr Umar the UPunch Curl would be made commercially available to hair transplant doctors along with the necessary training. www.dru.com

Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery—Global Open (PRS Global Open) is an open access, peer reviewed, international journal focusing on global plastic and reconstructive surgery. PRS Global Open publishes on all areas of plastic and reconstructive surgery, including basic science/experimental studies pertinent to the field.

Sanusi Umar, MD, FAAD, FASDS is an internationally recognized surgeon with board certification by the American Board of Dermatology, Fellow of the American Society of Dermatologic Surgery, and Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology. Dr. Umar is also an associate faculty member at the David Geffen School of Medicine at University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) and a member of the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery (ISHRS). Dr. Umar is a well-published academic pioneer in the field of hair transplant surgery and his publications have appeared in multiple journals, including Journal of the American Medical Association - JAMA Dermatology, Aesthetic Surgery Journal and Dermatologic Surgery.