Advancements in Graft Placement Techniques.

Area of Science:

• Surgical techniques in hair restoration.
• Dermatology and cosmetic surgery.

Background:

• Historically, forceps were the primary tool for placing follicular units (FUs) during hair transplantation.
• Dr. Choi introduced the "implanter" in 1992, enabling simultaneous incision creation and FU placement, initially favored in Asia due to hair characteristics.

Purpose of the Study:

• To review the evolution of follicular unit implantation techniques in hair restoration surgery.
• To compare the advantages and disadvantages of forceps versus implanter/inserter tools.

Main Methods:

• The study is a review of historical and modern hair transplantation techniques.
• It discusses the development and adoption of the implanter tool in conjunction with the follicular unit excision (FUE) technique.

Main Results:

• The introduction of the implanter offered a less damaging method for FU placement compared to forceps.
• The widespread adoption of follicular unit excision (FUE) technique, yielding uniform FUs, increased the appeal of implanters in Western countries.
• Various types of implanters and inserters have been developed beyond the original Korean design.

Conclusions:

• The choice of implantation technique is influenced by surgeon preference and the specific advantages of each instrument.
• The increased fragility of FUs harvested with FUE has driven the acceptance of implanter-based techniques for safer graft placement.