Hair transplant using motorized FUE
I want to share with you some notes from Dr. Bertrem Ng., on what a patient should expect from a hair transplant professional, and, from the FUE with ethics and values of the service.
(Below the credits of the publication)
The Guinea Pig
The learning curve to run a FUE procedure is very long. The technique can only be perfected through constant practice on patients. Some centers offer incredibly low fees to attract patients. The questions remain:
1. Is it ethical to perform surgery on a patient for the sole purpose of personal gain (to practice FUE)?
2. Is the patient informed that the physician lacks the experience required for best result?
The learning curve to run a FUE procedure is very long. The technique can only be perfected through constant practice on patients. Some centers offer incredibly low fees to attract patients. The questions remain:
1. Is it ethical to perform surgery on a patient for the sole purpose of personal gain (to practice FUE)?
2. Is the patient informed that the physician lacks the experience required for best result?
To summarize, automated FUE systems are just one tool used for grafting. Good results also depend on careful patient selection, implantation line design, graft survival, incisions and seeding, post-operative care, adjunctive therapy, etc. The method should not be marketed as a secret weapon of success to attract buyers. This must be supported by appropriate training, experience gained on patients, and professional support. Otherwise it would be like selling a gun to a child. The donor area is limited and should never be wasted. Primum non nocere …
International Hair Transplant Forum January / February 2012
www.ISHRS.org
Editor’s Note: The questions and comments posed by Dr. Ng are very pertinent. Considering the handling of patients as “guinea pigs”.it is a fact that for the training of each physician there is a learning curve that will inevitably be practiced on patients to some extent. Lying about experience is unethical, practicing on patients is not necessarily unethical if the surgeon has been properly trained in all steps of the procedure, not just in the use of the “automated machine.” I believe that telling the patient that you cannot get the best result due to your relative lack of experience is unrealistic, since no one would then be able to develop the practice if it were not done in this way. It is the physician’s obligation to properly learn the technique and be honest with the patient about his training and experience. Offering a discount during the “learning curve” is unethical in my opinion. Considering the sales techniques for automated grafting machines, it is well known that these suction assisted devices have been on the market for about 20 years. The reason why companies frequently seek novice and inexperienced doctors is because the use of these machines is practically non-existent by experienced hair transplant surgeons, who do not see the cost-benefit ratio as favorable due to the high cost of these devices. Dr. Ng’s comments on using the machine with just one day of training are well received. – RRMD
