Hair Restoration Surgery Terminology

Glossary of terms and definitions commonly used in hair restoration surgery:

Follicular Unit — A single hair and its follicle.

Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) — A method of stripping large numbers of single follicular units from a donor site and extracting single units from the strip microscopically. A method of extracting single follicular units from the donor site by small punch excisions is known as the FOX procedure by its developers.

Follicular Unit Graft — A graft consisting of a single follicular unit. Single follicular unit transplants are used to create a “natural” appearance in patients who can benefit from the procedure. The decision to use follicular unit grafts must be based upon medical, surgical, cosmetic and cost considerations after complete examination of the patient and full discussion between physician and patient.

Micrograft — A graft containing 1 or 2 hairs, obtained from the donor area with a micropunch or sliced off from a round graft (see below). A micrograft is typically placed into holes made in the scalp with a microneedle or punch.

Minigraft — A graft containing 3 or 4 hairs (small minigraft) or 5 or 6 hairs (large minigraft. There are many variations of minigrafts derived from round grafts.

Round Graft — A standard type of graft with many variations. A large round graft may contain many hairs. The round graft is obtained from the donor site by surgical removal and may be used “as is” or may be sliced into smaller units for micro-, mini- or slit grafts.

Slit Graft — Hairs obtained from a donor site directly or sectioned from a larger round graft is inserted into a slit made in the scalp by the tip of a scalpel blade.