To give you a clear picture, if one needs 2,000 grafts on the first session, that means one will have 2,000 of these white dots on the scalp. Then an additional 2,000 grafts are done on the second session, that means one will have another 2,000 white dots added to the existing scars from the previous session, for a total of 4,000 dot scars. Meanwhile the donor area will become thinner as a result. Over time, continued thinning in the donor area with the subsequent session may cause the FUE scars to become visible.

Compared to the dot scars, the FUT produces a linear scar that might be easier to notice on patients who wear very short hairstyles.

On the other hand, FUT method involves excising a strip of hair from the area where the existing scar was left from last procedure so it does not create an additional linear scar while there are plenty of surrounding hair can be reserved as future supplies if needed. Most FUT patients will always have only one scar no matter how many times they have the procedures done.

SAFE DONOR AREA or SDA  as shown here is an area in the occipital and adjoining temporal zones in which hairs are permanent by nature. These are the only donor hairs on the scalp that can be harvested for hair transplantation in order to achieve the optimum outcome. Any hair outside the SDA is not permanent.

Unfortunately not all hair done with FUE procedure will grow permanently. Some of which are more likely to fall out eventually and will not regrow whereas hair done with FUT procedure literally stays at bay for life regardless of the patient's heredity or severity of baldness. It may shed from time to time like the rest of the hair; however, it will grow back and stay with you for good.

With FUE procedure, the surgeon can randomly extract only 30-35% of hair in the SDA for the procedure, the remainder is left to cover the scars; otherwise, they will be visible. That said, the surgeon have to extract the rest of the needed hair grafts from outside the SDA which is not permanent and will fall out eventually without growing back. This is one of the reasons that make FUE’s long-term success rate not as promising as FUT’s.

Here’s why that matters: 

Human scalp hair grows in small natural groupings called follicular units (FUs)—each containing 1, 2, 3, or even 4 hairs. Everyone has a unique distribution of these graft types. Some people naturally have more single-hair grafts, while others have more 2- to 4-hair grafts (please look at the photos)

In the FUT procedure, we remove a thin strip of scalp tissue from the donor area and carefully dissect it under a microscope. This allows us to preserve and use all types of follicular units, maintaining the patient’s original proportions. The result? A hairline and density that closely mimic your natural pattern. 

With FUE, however, many surgeons tend to selectively extract mostly 2-, 3-, or 4-hair grafts to make the outcome look thicker using fewer grafts. While this may increase density in the short term, it can disrupt the natural balance of hair types—especially in delicate areas like the hairline—making the results look less natural.