Sapphire FUE: The Future Of Hair Restoration

When follicular unit extraction was first introduced, it was hailed as a major leap forward in the hair transplantation industry. And it’s hard to argue that it was anything but. Prior to the introduction of FUE, the most popular method of hair restoration was follicular unit transplantation (FUT). Though effective, FUT was pretty barbaric. It involved the removal and relocation of actual hair-bearing skin on the patient’s scalp.

This earned it the nickname “strip harvesting”. By removing individual follicles rather than skin itself, FUE greatly simplified hair transplantation. Minimally invasive and virtually painless, it remains the world’s most popular method of hair transplantation to this day. However, things may not be that way for long. A recently introduced twist on follicular unit extraction is stealing the spotlight from traditional FUE. Is this new procedure right for you? Read on to find out. Here is everything you need to know about sapphire FUE.

The Procedure

Sapphire follicular unit extraction followers a very similar format to its traditional counterpart. The main difference between the two comes in the former’s use of sapphire blades. These blades are used to make incisions in the patient’s scalp prior to the implantation of follicles taken from the donor site. In traditional FUE, the blades used are made of steel and feature a U-shaped pin. The sapphire blades of this new method, however, feature a V-shaped pin. This V-shaped pin allows for smaller and more accurate incisions. Meanwhile, the fact that the blades are made from sapphire and not steel virtually eradicates the risk of irritation. This makes sapphire follicular unit extraction a possibility even for those suffering from allergies.

Hair Recovery Period

One of the great allures of traditional follicular unit extraction is its brief recovery period. While FUT often requires in excess of a month to fully recover from, most who undergo follicular unit extraction can resume normal life within a week of the procedure. The recovery time of sapphire FUE is even shorter again. Because the sapphire blades used in the procedure make such small incisions on the scalp, a patient can expect to fully recover in the space of a weekend. This makes it the ideal method of hair restoration for workaholics who can’t dedicate a whole week or month to convalesce.

The Price

Owing to its effectiveness and convenience, traditional follicular unit extraction is one of the most expensive methods of hair restoration in the world. Those who wish to secure such treatment in the Western world can expect to pay as much as $20,000. Unsurprisingly, this leads many people to assume sapphire FUE must be around the same price, if not more expensive. This is assumption is not correct. You see, sapphire follicular unit extraction is a relatively new procedure. It was largely developed in Turkey, which remains one of the only countries in the world to offer it. As you may already be aware, Turkey is famous for the low price of its hair transplants.

There, it is not unusual for a patient to secure FUT treatment for less than $2000. Meanwhile, FUE treatment, sapphire or otherwise, rarely set patients back more than $5000. This means anybody can obtain sapphire follicular unit extraction for a fraction of the cost of its more traditional counterpart, as long as they are willing to travel to Turkey for it. We actually encourage this. After all, as you’ll see from this satisfied past patient, Turkey’s hair restoration clinics are just as impressive as those of the Western world, if not more so!