Dr. U Releases Nine Year Update on Patient With Leg Hair Grafts Inserted For Hairline Restoration
In 2006, Sanusi Umar MD (Dr. U), considered the global leader in body hair transplantation, performed a first ever hairline restoration surgery using leg hair follicles as grafts. And this year of 2015 marks the ninth year after the patient’s procedure. The Office of Dr. U recently unveiled new photos and an update on the current state of the patient’s hairline.
The gentleman treated by Dr. U sought repair for thick hair grafts that were derived from a strip surgery excision removed from the back of the head.
However, these hairs created noticeable and unnatural looking clusters, causing the patient to comb his hair forward for years, afraid that others would notice. However, the fine quality of leg hair helped him recover the natural look that he truly wanted. He succeeded in being able to achieve a softer, more life-like hairline edge.
His hairline continued to show resiliency at his two year follow up. The highly acclaimed medical journal JAMA Dermatology featured his procedure along with a four year follow up which showed that the 0.5-1.0cm margin of leg hair grafts continued to thrive.
And now, in 2015, the patient continues to enjoy his natural looking, undetectable hairline, proud to show photos of his hair and how it still frames his face in a youthful way, despite being nine years older.
The leg hair grafts were inserted into a margin of the hairline that ranged from 0.5-1.0cm. But anyone seeing him would not be able to tell that he had undergone a hair transplant surgery, unless they read about his story.
His new photos and his recent feedback were published in a recent blog post published by Dr. U’s office, entitled “Longevity of Leg Hair Grafts in Hairline After 9 Years – Update on First Known Leg to Head Transplant Patient.”
Hairline With Leg Hair Grafts – So Far So Good
According to Dr. U, a common complaint he receives from the patients who seek his help to repair results from other clinics is the embarrassment they feel when other people stare at their hairlines during conversation. The patient featured here was certainly no stranger to feelings of self consciousness due to poorly executed hair restoration.
He nicknamed himself, “Sofarsogood” in hair transplant forums where he would report on the status of his hairline. At the two year point, he issued the statement, “I am very happy to report that after 2 years, my BHT enhanced hairline is growing strong and looking very natural”
Here are the latest photos provided by the patient along with his latest commentary below featured in the 2015 blog post update
“On the ten year anniversary of my hairline reconstruction by Dr. Umar I couldn’t be happier with the results. And the fact that it was all accomplished with my own leg hair is mind blowing…Of all the strip procedures I’ve had done over the years, Dr. Umar’s BHT hairline reshaping is by far the most artistic and satisfying.”
The Longevity of Leg Hair Grafts
Many people were quite skeptical that the transplanted leg hair follicles would actually last long term.
Standard forms of hair transplant procedures have long been relying on follicles from the patient’s scalp. This is because there had not been support for the long term viability of leg hair grafts until now.
Dr. U’ developed his own surgical instrumentation known as UGraft which is designed to safely remove many types of body hair. Also it is configured to leave much higher wound healing standards for better cosmetic healing results in the donor area.
The absence of mechanical damage and meticulous surgical handling of the body hair follicles contributes to their high survival rate. With optimized conditions in place, new blood vessels are formed to anchor and connect the grafts to their new environment.
The Evolution of Hairline Restoration and Better Choices For Today’s Patients
The dreaded “pluggy hairline” has been the center of jokes and even celebrity tabloid stories due to how commonplace this used to be. It was a dead giveaway sign that surgery had been performed.
But hair transplant techniques have continued to evolve to the point where incredibly natural looking results are now more of the norm due to advancements in surgical techniques and technology like Dr. U’s UGraft device.
The ultimate goal of a hair transplant procedure is to create results so natural looking that no one can tell that anything had been done. And this would invariably require the use of thinner hair for creating true to life detail.
This patient’s experience has not only shown the world that leg hair is an extraordinarily natural looking match for the hairline, but that it also lasts very well in the long term.
Patients seeking hair transplant surgery for hairline recession are now able to rest assured that there are realistic and well supported options for achieving the best and most natural looking outcomes possible.
