Robot-assisted hair restoration LA Times Article

[John P. Cole, MD]

I really don't understand why the data on follicle extraction is so inaccurate in these reports regarding robotic extractions.

Extraction rates vary by physician and technique. There are many physicians who can extract over 1000 grafts in one hour by a variety of techniques.

it does not take years to become proficient in manual FUE. It takes no more than one week for a physician with good hands. Many physicians are able to extract grafts well by the second day when done manually. With some mechanical devices including mine, which is not available at this time, you can become proficient in 2 or 3 minutes.

Transection rates vary by physician and technique, as well. The robot is better than some physicians and worse than others.

The robot has trouble differentiating grafts containing more than one hair so it tends to select grafts containing fewer hairs per graft even though it uses a larger 1.2 mm punch.

In Alaska, over 40% of the physicians in the audience offered FUE. i have no idea where the 10% of all physicians came from. In 2008 over 10% of all hair restoration surgery procedures were done by FUE (mostly manual techniques).

i think the robot has a place in hair transplant surgery. It offers a better transection rate than many physicians can achieve. It is also going to be faster than many physicians. Still, it is much slower than many physicians and much slower than some.

i think we should see accurate data when a physician promotes a tool they have an financial interest in. Otherwise, i think it really damages their credibility.