Dr. Bernstein Introduces Robotic Graft Selection at ARTAS Annual Meeting

Dr. Bernstein Introduces Robotic Graft Selection at ARTAS Annual Meeting

Dr. Bernstein Presenting at ARTAS User Group Meeting 2015

Dr. Robert M. Bernstein introduced a new capability of the ARTAS® robotic system, “Follicular Unit Graft Selection,” at the ARTAS User Group Meeting on February 7th, 2015 in Newport Coast, CA. He presented the new technology and the preliminary results of a bilateral pilot study of the technique conducted at Bernstein Medical.

In robotic graft selection, the hair restoration surgeon programs the ARTAS robot to harvest follicular units based on the number of hairs in each unit. The robot first selects and then isolates larger follicular units of 2-hairs or more. If too few 1-hair units are extracted, the surgeon can program a second pass at extracting only the smallest grafts. As an alternative, the larger units can be divided into smaller ones using stereo-microscopic dissection. The goal is to both minimize wounding and harvest an adequate distribution of varying size follicular units to satisfy the surgeon’s, and ultimately the patient’s, aesthetic hair restoration needs. The new robotic graft selection system enables the robot to intelligently and efficiently harvest follicular units.

Results of the bilateral pilot study showed that the robot’s new graft selection capability was superior to random graft selection, the robot’s default setting, in the amount of hairs extracted per harvest attempt. Dr. Bernstein described how he was able to generate more transplantable grafts with fewer attempts at harvesting. By splitting larger follicular units into smaller grafts under stereo-microscopic dissection, he was able to produce additional grafts for use in the transplant without causing further wounding.

When the new computerized graft selection capability is coupled with dissection of larger units, the result is a substantial improvement over randomized graft selection. Read more about Robotic Graft Selection and the pilot study.

Dr. Bernstein also updated the meeting attendees on the robot’s recipient site creation technique that he introduced the prior year and some best practices in incorporating the ARTAS Hair Studio software into clinical practice.

Click here to read about Robotic Follicular Unit Graft Selection

Click here to read about Robotic Hair Transplants

ARTAS User Group Meeting 2015

Dr. Bernstein Presenting at ARTAS User Group Meeting 2015

Posted by Robert M. Bernstein M.D.

Can Second Hair Transplant Repair Pits in Scalp from Prior Procedure?

Q: I recently had a hair transplant procedure done in Florida and it has been about 8 months. When I am in direct overhead light and when sunlight is behind me, I see many tiny holes that are not visible under normal light. I know these are where they placed the transplanted hair but need to know if there is a way to remove these tiny holes. I am obviously not getting any answers from the doctor that performed the hair restoration. I am wondering if dermal fillers, dermabrasion, or laser treatment would work to fix this and if so, do you offer these treatments?

A: This condition is often referred to as pitting and occurs when grafts are placed below the surface of the skin. It is more common with large grafts rather than small ones and is almost never seen in Follicular Unit Transplantation (FUT).

In general, visible holes can result from mini-micrografting hair transplant procedures where the grafts (and thus the recipient sites needed to hold them) are larger than approximately 1.2mm. Recipients sites smaller than 1.2 rarely leave any mark. In follicular unit hair transplant procedures, the grafts will fit into sites smaller than 1.2mm so surface changes are generally not seen (even if the grafts are not placed flush with the skin).

It is difficult to fix the holes directly with the methods you listed as fillers do not fix well defined holes and laser-abrasion and dermabrasion may destroy the surrounding hair.

A properly performed second procedure that places follicular unit grafts in the area should correct the problem.

Posted by Robert M. Bernstein M.D.

What is the History of Hair Transplant Procedures?

Q: Dr. Bernstein, I remember Senator William Proxmire. He was one of the first sort of high-profile people who had a hair transplant probably, what, thirty years ago, and to be honest with you, it wasn’t all that great. It looked kind of funny. Have we made any progress in the last twenty-five, thirty years? — A.E., Fort Lee, N.J.

A: When hair transplant surgery was first developed in the late 1950s, early 1960s, everybody was so ecstatic that it grew – that one could actually move hair from the back of the head to the top, and it would grow – that no one really considered either the long-term implications or the aesthetic aspects of the procedure. And the fact that the hair grew is actually a problem because it never went away when it was transplanted poorly.

Over the years the grafts have gotten smaller and smaller. So where in the ’60s and ’70s they were the size of pencil erasers, they gradually decreased in size until doctors were performing hair transplants using just a few hairs at a time. The major breakthrough came in the mid 1990s when we realized that hair doesn’t grow individually but grows in little tiny groups and these groups are called follicular units.

In modern hair transplant surgery (which began in 1995) hair is taken from the back of the scalp and moved to the front and top of the scalp in these individual groups of one to four hairs.

In this way the results can completely mimic the way hair grows in nature.

See the Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT) section for more information.

Posted by Robert M. Bernstein M.D.

What Factors Determine Hair Transplant Graft Count?

Q: Is it possible to tell me roughly how many grafts would be left from donor area if one had a hair transplant of 2,500 grafts and had a density of around 2.0? G.H. – New York, NY

A: How much hair can be harvested in total depends upon a number of factors besides donor density. These include: scalp laxity, hair characteristics (such as hair shaft diameter, color and wave), and the actual dimensions of the permanent zone.

Every person is different, so all of these factors would need to be taken into account to determine the total number of grafts that would be available for the hair restoration.

Posted by Robert M. Bernstein M.D.

What Causes ‘Graft Popping’ During Surgical Hair Restoration?

Q: What causes graft popping during a hair transplant? G.K. – Carle Place, N.Y.

A: Popping, or the tendency for grafts to elevate after they have been placed into the recipient area, is caused by a number of factors including:

Packing the grafts too closely, particularly when they are placed on a very acute (sharp) angle with the skin
Rough placing techniques
Bleeding
Poor fit between the graft and recipient site
Natural characteristics of the patient’s skin, including the elasticity and stickiness of wound edges

The problem with popping is that it exposes grafts to drying (while they are elevated on the skin surface) and trauma (when they have to be re-inserted).

The judgment and experience of the surgeon performing hair transplants is extremely important in minimizing popping. It is important that the surgeon customize the site size to the different size follicular unit grafts and to test the recipient sites as they are made, to make sure that the “fit” is perfect.

Although it is important to place grafts close together to get the best cosmetic result possible, over-packing of the grafts risks popping and other factors (such as overwhelming the blood supply) that may lead to poor growth.

In the end, maximum growth of the transplanted hair should be the primary goal.

Posted by Robert M. Bernstein M.D.

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Dr. Bernstein Introduces Robotic Graft Selection at ARTAS Annual Meeting

Can Second Hair Transplant Repair Pits in Scalp from Prior Procedure?

What is the History of Hair Transplant Procedures?

What Factors Determine Hair Transplant Graft Count?

What Causes ‘Graft Popping’ During Surgical Hair Restoration?

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Dr. Bernstein Introduces Robotic Graft Selection at ARTAS Annual Meeting

Can Second Hair Transplant Repair Pits in Scalp from Prior Procedure?

What is the History of Hair Transplant Procedures?

What Factors Determine Hair Transplant Graft Count?

What Causes ‘Graft Popping’ During Surgical Hair Restoration?

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