What are the advantages of choosing FUE/CIT over a strip procedure?

There are a number of advantages to selecting a CIT procedure:

• - CIT is less invasive, allowing for a faster and much less painful recovery due to the absence of stitches.
• - CIT does not leave a linear scar in the donor area, allowing patients to wear their hair shorter.
• - CIT does not permanently distort hair growth angles (whereas strip does).
• - CIT provides an alternative if the scalp is too tight for strip excision (a common affliction in former strip patients).
• - CIT is ideal for repairing or camouflaging former strip donor scars.
• - CIT maximizes the donor area for harvesting and allows the physician to “cherry pick” follicular groups which will yield consistent quality results.
• - With CIT, grafts spend less time outside of the body ensuring maximal survival.
• - CIT allows for the possibility of harvesting body or beard donor hair.

You can see a full comparison chart in this link: fue vs strip surgery

Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) offers a substantial amount of benefits over Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT). The latter is an older method that is more inconsistent and, in fact, can cause substantial problems for the patient as the transplant ages. FUE, meanwhile, is the latest available method available to patients.

FUT involves extracting a donor strip for follicular grafts, typically from the back of the head, and then segmenting them into grafts for transplantation into donor areas. Patients must carefully tend to the extraction site for months after the procedure, one reason fewer patients are opting for FUT. The donor strip is not typically that large but will still leave a noticeable scar that short haircuts cannot always obscure. Further, FUT transplants can age, leading the plugs to become more noticeable and have an appearance similar to doll hair.

FUE, on the other hand, involves individual extractions of follicles. Patients do not have to worry about a large, orbital scar on their head nor months of caring for an extraction site. Depending on the procedure and surgeon, though, FUE can lead to scars similar to moth holes in a garment and may not yield the best results.

A pioneer of FUE, Dr. Cole and Forhair offer some of the best results the world over. His namesake FUE variant, Cole Isolation Technique (CIT®), is among the least invasive techniques in the world and offers a number of benefits over most versions of FUE. Selecting CIT® from Dr. Cole means enjoying:

Minimal to zero visible scarring

30% to 40% donor regeneration with application of ACell

A much shorter recovery time than FUT

A transection rate of under 3%: most surgeon's transection rates range from 5% to 10% or 20%

Precise placement of grafts, leading to better aesthetic results

One of the most important elements of choosing a FUE technique is recognizing that some variants are more effective and some are less effective. Many surgeons are resorting to automated or robotic options that typically have a higher transection rate and, typically, offer less impressive aesthetic results. Read here to learn more about the differences between FUT and FUE.