Hair transplantation is split up into two parts, the harvesting of hair follicles from the donor zone (back of head) and the placement of hair follicles into recipient sites on the front and top of the head. Dr. Ratushny employs the latest technology in both follicular unit harvesting and follicular unit placement. For placement, Dr. Ratushny uses both dull and sharp implanters to assist him in placing the follicular units, depending on the patient case.
Implanters are medical tools that hold hair follicles and allow their placement in the most gentle way possible. The use of implanters minimizes the trauma to the follicles themselves and to the scalp where the hair follicles are placed. Dr. Ratushny is one of the few hair transplant surgeons who uses sharp implanters to place grafts himself. These implanters maximize the efficiency of Dr. Ratushny’s surgical technique and allow him to create the recipient sites and placing the follicular units within the recipient site in one smooth motion. This advanced technique allows for minimal manipulation of the hair follicles and minimal trauma to the recipient site on the scalp.
Dr. Ratushny’s hair transplant surgical assistants are very skilled at the difficult task of loading the sharp implanters and handing them to Dr. Ratushny in a way that allows him to maintain focus on the recipient area of the scalp without breaking his attention or momentum. Dr. Ratushny uses surgical loupes for magnification of the recipient site so he can place the hair follicles in between the patient’s existing hair follicles without affecting the existing hair follicles. Dr. Ratushny’s experience with sharp implanters allows him to more densely pack hair follicles, while still overseeing the aesthetic artistry of follicular unit placement. Dr. Ratushny thoughtfully pays attention to the positioning, angle, and curl of follicles that he places. Patients typically note less pain after the procedure given that there is a minimization of trauma to the recipient site of the scalp.
Other cases call for dull implanters, which similarly minimize trauma to the follicular units and the scalp. The main difference is that dull implanters are employed by Dr. Ratushny’s surgical assistants and the hair follicles are placed into recipient sites that Dr. Ratushny creates himself. Dr. Ratushny will discuss dull implanters in a later blog post.