Technique 04 · FUT / Strip Method
The highest graft yield achievable in a single session. A strip of donor scalp is removed and dissected under microscopes into intact follicular units — the technique for advanced hair loss with a strong donor area.
Highest Graft Yield
The highest graft yield achievable in a single session
Microscope-Dissected Grafts
Microscope dissection produces consistently intact, robust grafts
Efficient Donor Use
Efficient lifetime use of a finite donor supply
Lowest Cost Per Graft
Generally the lowest cost per graft
FUT hair transplant Dubai
FUT (Follicular Unit Transplantation), also called the strip method, removes a thin strip of skin from the permanent donor zone at the back of the head. The strip is dissected under microscopes into individual follicular units, which are implanted into the thinning area. FUT delivers the highest graft yield of any technique — often 2,000 to 5,000 grafts in one session — at the cost of a fine linear donor scar.
The Technique
FUT is the original follicular unit technique and, for the right patient, it remains the most productive. A narrow strip of skin — typically one to one and a half centimetres wide — is removed from the permanent donor zone at the back of the head. The wound is closed with a trichophytic closure that encourages hair to grow through the resulting line, and the strip goes to the dissection bench.
There, under stereo microscopes, technicians separate the strip into individual follicular units. This is the technique's central advantage: units are cut out under direct magnified vision, with the surrounding protective tissue intact, rather than punched blind through the skin. Transection rates are consistently low and the grafts tend to be robust.
FUT has fallen out of fashion because it leaves a line rather than dots, and because most patients want the option of cropping their hair short. But when a patient needs four or five thousand grafts, has good scalp laxity, and intends to keep their hair at a normal length, no other technique moves as much hair in a single day.
“No other technique moves as much hair in a single day.”
Our Approach
Trichophytic closure so hair grows through the donor line, not beside it
Strip divided under stereo microscopes into single, double, triple and quadruple-hair units
Recipient sites opened at the planned angle, depth and direction
Grafts placed by unit size to build a natural density gradient
Microscope dissection produces consistently intact, robust grafts
Efficient lifetime use of a finite donor supply
Well documented across decades of published outcomes
Treatment Areas
The same technique is executed differently in each area — graft size, implantation angle and density all change with the zone being treated.
FUT is used for advanced pattern loss where large areas need coverage in one sitting — a full frontal restoration plus crown, for example, in a single session rather than two staged FUE procedures. It also preserves donor supply efficiently for patients likely to need future sessions.
FUT is rarely selected as a primary beard technique, because beard cases seldom require the graft volumes that justify a strip. It is occasionally used when a very large beard reconstruction is combined with scalp work in the same session.
Explore Beard Transplant →FUT is not used for eyebrows alone. Brow reconstruction needs 150 to 400 single-hair grafts per side — far too few to warrant a strip excision, and better served by DHI or FUE.
Explore Eyebrow Transplant →
Candidacy
Scalp laxity is measured directly, since it determines how wide a strip can be taken and closed without tension. Poor laxity is a contraindication, not an inconvenience.
Under local anaesthetic, a narrow strip is removed from the permanent donor zone at the height where the band is safest and densest.
The wound edges are closed so that hair grows through the scar line rather than beside it, which substantially reduces how visible the line becomes.
The strip is divided under stereo microscopes into intact single, double, triple and quadruple-hair units — the step that gives FUT its high yield of undamaged follicles.
Sites are opened at the planned angle, depth and direction, with the same design discipline used in FUE and Sapphire FUE.
Grafts are placed by unit size to build a natural density gradient across the treated zones.
Compare
| FUT (Strip) | FUE | |
|---|---|---|
| Grafts per session | 2,000–5,000+ | 1,500–4,000 |
| Scar | One fine linear scar | Pinpoint dot scars |
| Shaving | Strip area only | Donor area shaved |
| Can wear hair very short | Not advisable | Yes |
| Follicle transection risk | Low — microscope dissection | Slightly higher — blind punching |
| Donor healing | 10–14 days, stitches removed | 7–10 days, no stitches |
| Donor discomfort | Moderate for the first week | Minimal |
| Lifetime donor efficiency | Higher yield per area used | Lower yield per area used |
| Cost per graft | Generally lower | Generally higher |
Honest Assessment
Recovery
Days 1–3
Donor tightness and mild discomfort are normal. Avoid bending, straining and neck flexion.
Days 5–7
Recipient crusting clears. Most patients return to work at the end of this week.
Days 10–14
Stitches or staples are removed at the clinic and the closure is assessed.
Weeks 2–6
Shedding phase in the recipient area. The donor line begins to soften and flatten.
Months 3–4
New growth appears; hair begins to grow through the trichophytic closure line.
Months 12–18
Final density. The donor line matures to a fine pale line concealed by surrounding hair.
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No — it is more selectively used. FUE overtook it because most patients want the freedom to wear short hair, not because FUT produces inferior grafts. For a patient needing four or five thousand grafts with good scalp laxity who keeps their hair at normal length, FUT remains the most productive single-session option available.
With a properly executed trichophytic closure the line is typically one to three millimetres wide and hair grows through it. At normal hair lengths it is not visible. At a number two clipper guard or shorter it will be. That trade-off is the single most important thing to be clear about before choosing FUT.
Yes. FUE grafts can be implanted directly into and around the linear scar to camouflage it, which is one of the main applications of our Scar Revision Hair Transplant service. Results depend on the scar's width and the blood supply within the scar tissue.
The procedure itself is comparable — both are performed under local anaesthetic. Recovery differs: FUT patients experience more donor tightness and tenderness in the first week, and have stitches to manage. Recipient-area recovery is essentially identical.
Often yes, provided scalp laxity is adequate and the donor zone has not been over-harvested. The reverse is also true — FUE after FUT is routine, and is frequently how a strip scar is camouflaged.
Typically 2,000 to 5,000 in one session, and occasionally more with excellent laxity and density. Your consultation includes a direct laxity measurement and donor density count to establish your realistic ceiling.
Related Techniques
Every Elora hair restoration journey begins with a complimentary consultation and scalp assessment. Our specialists evaluate your donor area, hair loss pattern, facial proportions and long-term goals, then recommend the technique — or combination of techniques — that will give you the most natural result.