Why Is It Called A 'Robotic' Hair Transplant?

Back in the day, many people in the medical field had the hope that one day they might be able to use robots to carry out delicate and difficult procedures. It is now regular practice for thousands of patients all over the globe to have robotic surgery aided procedures performed. Robotics, for instance, may be used in prostate and heart operations, in addition to hair transplantation procedures. The robotic hair transplant technology is the first device to really use robotic follicular unit extraction and provide exceptional results. But why is it called a “robotic” hair transplant? Let’s find out.

Do Stitches Need To Be Placed After An ARTAS Robotic Hair Transplant?

The ARTAS robotic system is a minimally invasive hair transplant technology that does not need sutures or surgical staples. This is consistent with the Follicular Unit Extraction methodology that is used in all FUE surgeries. Tiny circular incisions are left behind by robotic FUE rather than the larger sutured donor incision that is left by a strip FUT operation. These incisions heal with small white markings that are hardly noticeable even with short hair. Once your hair starts to grow back, the little dots are hardly noticeable.

What Exactly Is Meant By The Term ``Robotic Hair Transplant``?

To put it simply, the donor hair for a robotic hair transplant is extracted straight from the back and sides of the scalp using robotic control. This form of hair restoration operation is known as a robotic hair transplant. Follicular Unit Extraction is the name given to the particular kind of hair transplant procedure that makes use of robotic technology.

When performing FUE, a small round punch instrument is used to separate individual follicular units, which are naturally occurring groups of 1-4 hairs, from the surrounding tissue. This allows the follicular units to be extracted and then implanted in the area of the scalp that is experiencing hair loss. This procedure is very laborious and precise, and when it is carried out with manual devices, it often results in zero considerable damage or harm to the follicles.

Robotic technology makes it possible to conduct the FUE treatment in a manner that is both more exact and more consistent, eventually resulting in the grafts being able to develop to their full potential. During a robotic FUE hair transplant, individual follicular units are removed one at a time using an image-guided, computer-driven device known as the ARTAS Robotic System. This method was created by the business Restoration Robotics and is referred to as a robotic FUE hair transplant. At Nova Medical Hair Transplant we are proud to be able to offer this service to our patients in order to get the best results possible.

Is There A Type Of Patient That Responds Best To Robotic FUE?

It should be noted that robotic FUE is comparable to manual FUE in terms of how a patient can respond to the treatment. Every patient who is a good candidate for a hair transplant may have FUE done on them. Patients who are highly physically active and want to return to sports or vigorous activity as soon as possible are ideal candidates for robotic follicular unit extraction, which, in general, is recommended for patients who want to keep a short haircut. Patients who have extremely narrow scalps or who have an elevated risk of donor scarring are ideal candidates for FUE, which is why it is the therapy of choice.

In the same way as with manual FUE transplants, the optimum candidate for robotic FUE is a person whose skin has a thick dermis and whose hair is coarse, stiff, and growing in a direction that is more perpendicular to the scalp than horizontally across it.

Patients of Asian heritage tend to have more conspicuous examples of these traits. In clinical settings, the robotic system is often used for a broad variety of hair textures and colors, including coarse straight hair, curly hair, and wavy hair, among others. Robotic FUE is also highly effective in African-American patients who are at risk of having a thicker donor scar from a FUT-strip treatment.

In order to determine whether or not you are a good candidate for Robotic FUE, you will need to meet with one of our experts in hair loss for a consultation.

Is It Safe To Perform FUE Hair Transplant Surgery Using The ARTAS System?

In short, yes it is safe to perform during the procedure. The ARTAS FUE robot contains a number of safety measures that are unique to robotic systems and can only be found on robot devices. During the treatment, the tensioner, also known as a grid, is placed on the patient’s scalp and is held in place by silicone straps, which also serve to restrict head movement. Built-in motion sensors will immediately halt the activity of the robotic arm if there is any movement of the robot’s head while it is operating. Additionally, pausing the robot at any point is possible by pressing the stop buttons that are present on the pendant as well as the user interface.

The robot has a system of sophisticated sensors that identify the exact depth of the sharp and blunt needles that are used in the punching mechanism. This is an additional vital safety element of the robot. These needles each have a skin pressure sensor that, when activated, may cause an automated on/off switch to come into play. In the event that a sensor detects a pressure that is more than 10 newtons, an automated stop will be initiated, and the punch mechanism will retract.

For this reason, it makes the robotic hair transplant a fantastic and safe option for a lot of patients.

Comparing FUE And Robotic Hair Transplants: Is One Method Superior Than The Other?

Let’s evaluate each of them side by side to see which one is more advantageous.

Surgical Time

In spite of the fact that the ARTAS method makes use of a robot to harvest and implant the hair grafts in a more rapid and accurate manner, the procedure still takes around the same amount of time as traditional FUE surgery. The duration of an ARTAS procedure may range anywhere from five to seven hours, while a FUE procedure might last anywhere from six to eight hours.

Rate Of Survival For Hair Grafts

It is feasible for ARTAS to achieve a high graft survival rate because of its ability to choose the hair follicles from the donor region that are in the best possible condition while also ensuring a decreased transection rate. However, with FUE hair transplants as well, the survival percentage of hair grafts is quite high, hovering around around 95 percent.

Scarring

The fact that ARTAS does not leave a “linear scar” is often highlighted in promotional materials for the product. Because a whole strip of the scalp is removed during a FUT procedure, the patient will be left with a linear scar after the procedure.  Because the individual follicles are removed directly from the scalp during a FUE hair transplant rather than from an excised piece of skin, this has not been an issue at all during the duration of the procedure. When you have a FUE hair transplant, you won’t have to worry about getting a linear scar either since the hair grafts are removed one by one.

Recovery

Because the FUE method is used to accomplish the operation using ARTAS, the hair growth occurs at the same rapid pace as it would after a typical FUE procedure. When using ARTAS, you may start to observe effects after around six months, but it may take a whole year before you can evaluate the full impact of the treatment. In a similar fashion, the manual FUE procedure will cause your hair to start growing between three and four months following the operation, and you will be able to see the ultimate results between twelve and eighteen months after that.

Pain

You won’t feel any pain during any of your procedures since the operation is performed under local anesthesia, exactly like the classic method of FUE. This ensures that you won’t experience any discomfort during any of your procedures.

Discretion

Since an image-guided surgery is being carried out by the robot, you may believe that visibility won’t be an issue during a robotic hair transplant. However, this is not always the case. To undergo the operation, however, you will need to shave your head. This is also the case with the ARTAS procedure. It’s possible that this will always be the case. If you are getting a transplant through a surgeon, on the other hand, you have the option of getting an unshaven FUE hair transplant in situations where the balding area is not as large and not as many hair grafts are required. This is in cases where the balding area is not as large and not as many hair grafts are needed.

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