Sapphire Hair Transplant: Review, Cost, And Its Advantages
Follicular Unit Extraction, aka FUE, is commonly practiced among hair transplant techniques. And, sapphire hair transplant technique is a novel follicular unit extraction technique.
In this article, we’ll talk about the sapphire hair transplant technique, what it is, how it works, how much it costs, and what its advantages are over the other hair transplant techniques.
What is a Sapphire hair transplant?
Sapphire hair transplant is similar to the classical Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) technique except the blade used for creating channels in the recipient area of the scalp is different than classically FUE.
In classical FUE, a steel blade with a chisel tipped is used which is not as sharp and strong as a sapphire blade with an arrow tipped.
With Sapphire blade, surgeons can create microchannels that will remain open for longer and are less traumatic, thus few complications are seen with them.
Sapphire hair transplant is the latest improvement in the classical FUE technique, which is known for its natural-looking outcome.
The angle of the hair, its direction, and density can be easily controlled by creating a microchannel using the sapphire blade.
How Sapphire’s hair transplant is done?
Similar to classical FUE, the ideal patient is selected and pre-op investigations are done. Once the patient is fit for a hair transplant, the number of grafts needed is calculated based on the level of baldness and condition of the donor area.
Next, on the day of surgery, the patient’s head is shaved and the surgeon starts to take out the hair follicle from the donor area. Then, they select healthy and undamaged hair to place in the bald area of the patient.
Recommended reading: Can you have a hair transplant without shaving your head?
However, in the Sapphire hair transplant technique, a sapphire blade is used, which is not made of sapphire stones found in nature. Instead, Sapphire blades are made from aluminum oxide and are produced artificially.
These blades are strong, and sharp and have an arrow-tipped end which causes less damage to the scalp. Microchannels created by sapphire blades will remain for longer, and they are created in a different direction giving the desired angle to the hair shaft to make natural-looking hair after a hair transplant.
Also, the microchannel created by the sapphire blade holds the graft tightly so there is less chance of graft coming out from the transplant area, which is more common in classical FUE.
Post-up care after a sapphire hair transplant is similar to a classical FUE transplant.
What are the advantages of Sapphire hair transplant?
Here are the advantages of a sapphire hair transplant:
- Smaller incision and less traumatic
- Less irritation to the patient during and after surgery
- Short recovery time
- More density of hair and good graft retention
- Ability to change direction and angle of hair for the natural looking result
- Less chance of infection and scab formations
DHI Vs Sapphire hair transplant: What’s the difference?
In the Direct Hair Implant technique (DHI), a strip of tissue from a donor is taken out along with the hair follicle, which is sutured. Then, under the microscope, healthy and undamaged hair follicles are separated.
After that, hair follicles are placed in the recipient area either using a steel blade or a sapphire blade.
The only difference between DHI and sapphire hair transplant is that when taking out the hair graft from the donor area a strip of tissue is taken out which leaves a linear scar behind it after healing.
How much does it cost for a Sapphire hair transplant?
Sapphire hair transplant is done in Turkey as well as around the world. The cost of a sapphire hair transplant or hair transplant, in general, depends on how much hair you need to be transplanted and where you choose to do the surgery.
It is comparatively less expensive in Turkey, India, and Pakistan than in other countries. To know the exact cost of a hair transplant, see the pricing package of different hair transplant clinics near you or in different countries.
What is a Micro FUE hair transplant?
MICRO in Micro FUE stands for Minimally Invasive Collection by Reticular Oscillations. That means a micromotor is used to harvest hair grafts from the donor area using reticular oscillation or vibration mechanism.
It is a unique technology and a recent advance in hair transplant surgery that can extract the hair for a transplant more healthily and naturally.
In Micro FUE hair transplant, everything is similar to the classic FUE technique, but the only difference is the harvesting technique.
Micromotor can pull out the graft from the scalp without damaging the hair follicle and surrounding tissue.
Though all steps are similar to FUE in Micro FUE, harvesting graft differently using special instruments can result in the best and most natural-looking hair transplant without any complications such as scar formation, infection, or graft failure.
How Micro FUE hair transplant is done?
Like the Follicular Extraction Unit technique, Micro FUE starts with the selection of a good candidate for a hair transplant through meticulous history, examination, and blood tests.
Then, the number of grafts required is calculated, and a natural-looking hairline is planned. After that, the head is shaved, and hair from the donor area is taken out using a micromotor.
In classical FUE, a sharp cylindrical blade is used to cut through the scalp to extract the hair, instead of micromotor, which can damage hair follicles if not done correctly and cautiously.
Once hair is taken out from the donor area, they are kept in special media, and separate any damaged hair which can not be used for hair transplant.
Then, healthy and undamaged hair is placed in the recipient area, the bald area of the head. This procedure usually takes about 4-5 hours. And the wound heals within a couple of days.
What are the advantages of a Micro FUE hair transplant?
Here are some of the advantages of Micro FUE hair transplant over other hair transplant techniques:
- Extracting the hair follicle from the donor area with minimal damage to it or its surrounding structures
- No scarring or minimal scar seen in the donor area after healing
- Less post-operative pain
- Short recovery time
- Less chance of infection
- The higher graft survival rate
Micro FUE Vs Sapphire
In Sapphire FUE, a special sapphire blade is used to make a micro-hole in the bald area of scalp where hair is kept, which has been taken from the donor area.
Sapphire blade makes wedge-shaped hole which is minimally invasive and less damaging. Also, it can close within a few hours, thus avoiding the risk of infection and scab formation.
In Sapphire FUE, micromotor or cylindrical steel blades are used to extract hairs from the donor area.
Micro FUE Vs DHI
Direct Hair Implant is a hair transplant technique in which a surgeon will take out a strip of tissue from the donor area of the scalp. Then, under a microscope, they will take out the healthy hair follicle.
After that, selected hair follicles are transplanted in the recipient areas. DHI technique is mostly used in American-African people or people with curly hair where taking out hair using a conventional technique such as a cylindrical blade or micromotor is difficult due to the curling of hair inside the scalp.
Often, the DHI technique will cause a thick linear scar on the back of the head from where a strip of tissue is taken out.
Micro FUE vs Classical FUE
In Classical FUE, a sharp blade is used to cut through the scalp to take out the hair follicle from the donor area. These blades can cut anything that comes its way.
When it reaches below the scalp where surgeon can’t see, it can damage the hair bulb, sebaceous gland, and important oil-producing structures that keep hair healthy and moist.
And to remove out the hair follicle from the scalp, twitcher is used that produces more force which can damage the hair follicle in the process.
But, in Micro FUE, a minimally invasive technique is used. Micromotor can cut through scalp without damaging its vital structures. It is also equipped with suctioning feature, which can take out hair follicles by suctioning without using twitcher.
Bottom Line
Sapphire hair transplant is the latest improvement in the classical FUE technique where the sapphire blade is used which is sharper, and stronger and creates micro-channels that can hold graft tightly without creating much damage to the scalp.
Sapphire hair transplants can be done for men and women. And, different hair clinics offer different price ranges for procedures. Generally, it is less costly in Turkey. But, read the review about hair clinics well before deciding to do a hair transplant.
