In this example, Dr Sanusi Umar uses Body hair to head transplantation also called Body Hair Transplantation ( BHT ) in combination with Beard and head hair to restore a severely bald individual. Dr Umar uses BHT in patients that have a relative or absolute lack of traditional donor sources ( back of the head).
Traditional/regular hair transplant methods (often strip) rely solely on the transfer of hair from the sides and back of the head to the balding areas. The number of available hair by this method is limited to 5000-6000 (in most individuals). This number is not enough to compensate for the hair loss in severely bald individuals who often would have lost 25,000-50,000 follicles. When 5000-6000 follicles are used to make of for this loss as would be the case with traditional hair transplantation, the result is a very thin look. Alternatively traditional hair restoration surgeries have prioritized the front (called framing of the face). In this case the 5000 follicles are placed in the top and front 9often with a high receding hairline) while the top back (Crown) is left largely unaddressed. The severely bald individual is thus compelled to settle for a bald pate (crown) and an aged higher hairline with the best traditional transplants can offer. At which point they would have run out of head donor and options.
Using the “Umar procedure”, Dr Umar is able to expand the available donor supply by adding hair from the beard and body areas into the head donor pool. The result is that even severely bald individuals can be conceivably restored globally without sacrificing the crown or settling for an aged higher hairline. The boosted donor supply also implies a higher density than what can be achieved with fewer follicle. This is an option for severely bald individuals or those that are donor depleted until hair cloning cell based hair multiplication technology becomes available in the future.
The patient presented in this video had severe hair loss. He was not ready to settle for a bald crown and a higher aged hairline that traditional hair transplantation would have offers. Having estimated that his head donor supply cannot meet his demand for global coverage he visited Dr Umar with a view to adding BHT using the Umar procedure. Using a combination of head, body and beard hair, Dr Umar was able to transfer about 20,000 grafts to his entire balding area in the course of 2 surgeries spaced 1 year apart. The result at 1 year after the last surgery (with still more improvement coming) is a fuller look with still a pristine back and sides of the head which is not overharvested and devoid of a strip scar that could have limited his hair styling options significantly. With this procedure, the patient is able to sport a crew cut without the fear of exposing a linear scar, yet he still is left with an ample supply of head and body donor hair for any touch ups or to address future progression of baldness.
Dr Umar performs BHT using a process he calls Single Follicle Extraction and Transfer (SFET) or Umar Procedure. SFET is his version of the procedure commonly referred to as Follicular Unit Extraction ( FUE ). The procedure is performed at his Redondo Beach office in California. DermHair Clinic is a division of FineTouch Dermatology Inc. Dr Umar is a fellowship trained cosmetic surgeon, and Certified by the American Board of Dermatology. (less info)
