Search Our Scientific Publications & Authors

Skin Appendage Disord 2019 Feb 5;5(2):65-71. Epub 2018 Sep 5.

Department of Dermatology and Dermatopathology, University of California-Irvine, Irvine, California, USA.

Importance: Hair loss, or alopecia, is one of the most commonly presented problems in dermatology. Scarring alopecias are considered particularly damaging due to limited success in slowing permanent disease progression, and current treatment methods, such as intralesional and topical steroids and topical minoxidil, are largely ineffective.

Objective: Hair transplantation is a debated treatment option for advanced cases of primary scarring alopecia. Read More

Int J Trichology 2018 Mar-Apr;10(2):80-83

Center for Dermatology and Hair Diseases Professor Trüeb, Zurich-Wallisellen, Switzerland.

A case of cutaneous graft versus host disease (GvHD) presenting as fibrosing alopecia in a pattern distribution (FAPD) is discussed, possibly providing a mechanistic model for a better understanding of the pathogenic events underlying cicatricial pattern hair loss. The implication of a follicular inflammation and fibrosis associated with patterned hair loss has emerged from several independent studies. Eventually, Zinkernagel and Trüeb reported a peculiar type of cicatricial pattern hair loss with histopathological features consistent with lichen planopilaris (LPP) associated with androgenetic alopecia (AGA). Read More

Dermatol Clin 2018 Jan 12;36(1):63-67. Epub 2017 Oct 12.

Department of Dermatology, Weill Cornell Medicine, New York, NY, USA; Department of Dermatology, University of Buffalo, Buffalo, NY, USA. Electronic address:

Hair loss affects millions of people worldwide and can have devastating effects on an individual's psychoemotional well-being. Today hair restoration technologies through hair transplantation have advanced with the use of robots and follicular unit extraction/grafting that can offer patients excellent clinical results. Adjuvant modalities, such as platelet-rich plasma injections, lasers, and stem cells, can further enhance durability, health, and appearance of hair transplants. Read More

Dermatol Clin 2018 Jan;36(1):57-62

Hair Transplant Institute of Miami, Offices of Merrick Park, 4425 Ponce de Leon Boulevard, Suite 230, Coral Gables, FL 33146, USA. Electronic address:

Hair loss affects millions of people worldwide and can have devastating effects on an individual's psychological and emotional well-being. Hair restoration technologies have advanced with the use of robotics and manual and motorized follicular unit extraction to provide patients excellent clinical results. Adjuvant modalities such as platelet-rich plasma injections, lasers and stem cells can further enhance the survivability and appearance of hair transplants. Read More

Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open 2017 Sep 21;5(9):e1503. Epub 2017 Sep 21.

SO-EP Aesthetic & Plastic Surgery Clinic, Kayseri, Turkey.

Background: Migraine headache is a primary neurologic disease affecting millions of people worldwide. As a consequence, quality of life is diminished, productivity suffers (through loss of work force), and treatment costs are substantial. The occurrence rate in the general population is quite high, with women accounting for 3 of every 4 cases. Read More

Plast Reconstr Surg 2018 01;141(1):148-151

Konya, Turkey From the Department of Plastic Surgery, Selcuk University Medical Faculty.

Background: The scar that occurs after cleft lip surgery poses a serious cosmetic problem. One of the methods used to solve this problem in adult male patients is hair transplantation. However, satisfactory results with this method cannot always be achieved because of possible graft loss. Read More

Bone Marrow Transplant 2017 Jul 20;52(7):984-988. Epub 2017 Mar 20.

Department of Dermatology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands.

Permanent alopecia after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is distressing and few studies have investigated this late effect. The aim of the study was to assess the percentage of patients with alopecia and investigate risk factors for alopecia. Patients who underwent allogeneic HSCT before age 19 years, from January 1990 to January 2013, who were at least 2 years after transplant and in follow-up in our clinic were included. Read More

J Drugs Dermatol 2016 Nov;15(11):1407-1412

A robotic system can select and remove individual hair follicles from the donor area with great precision and without fatigue. This report describes the use of the robotic system in a megasession for hair restoration. Patients were instructed to cut their hair to 1. Read More

Aesthet Surg J 2016 Nov 30;36(10):1101-1110. Epub 2016 May 30.

Dr Umar is a Clinical Instructor of Medicine, Department of Medicine, Division of Dermatology, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA.

Background: Body hair shafts from the beard, trunk, and extremities can be used to treat baldness when patients have inadequate amounts of scalp donor hair, but reports in the literature concerning use of body hair to treat baldness are confined to case reports.

Objectives: This study aimed to assess the outcome of body hair transplanted to bald areas of the scalp in selected patients.

Methods: From 2005 through 2011, 122 patients preselected for adequate body hair had donor hair transplanted from the beard, trunk, and the extremities to the scalp by follicular unit extraction (FUE) by the author at a single center. Read More

J Invest Dermatol 2017 02 7;137(2):515-518. Epub 2016 Oct 7.

Department of Dermatology, Seoul National University College of Medicine, Seoul, Korea; Laboratory of Cutaneous Aging and Hair Research, Biomedical Research Institute, Seoul National University Hospital, Institute of Human-Environment Interface Biology, Medical Research Center, Seoul National University, Seoul, Korea. Electronic address:

Dermatol Surg 2016 Jun;42(6):710-4

*Department of Dermatology, College of Physicians and Surgeons, Columbia University, New York, New York; †Department of Surgery (Division of Plastic Surgery), Icahn School of Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, New York, New York.

Background: The use of robotic technology to harvest grafts in a follicular unit extraction (FUE) hair transplant procedure has been available since 2011. A new capability of the robotic system is to harvest follicular units based on the number of hairs they contain to increase the hair/wound yield.

Objective: To assess the benefit of follicular unit graft selection during a robotic FUE procedure. Read More

Dermatol Surg 2016 06;42(6):715-6

Clinical Professor of Dermatology, Weill Cornell Medical School, Private Practice, New York, New York.

An Bras Dermatol 2015 Nov-Dec;90(6):814-21

Universidade Federal do Paraná, Curitiba, PR, Brazil.

Background: Permanent alopecia after bone marrow transplantation is rare, but more and more cases have been described, typically involving high doses of chemotherapeutic agents used in the conditioning regimen for the transplant. Busulfan, classically described in cases of irreversible alopecia, remains associated in recent cases. The pathogenesis involved in hair loss is not clear and there are few studies available. Read More

J Drugs Dermatol 2015 Nov;14(11):1285-8

Skin grafts are utilized in dermatology to reconstruct a defect secondary to surgery or trauma of the skin. Common indications for skin grafts include surgical removal of cutaneous malignancies, replacement of tissue after burns or lacerations, and hair transplantation in alopecia. Skin grafts may be cosmetically displeasing, functionally limiting, and significantly impact patient's quality-of-life. Read More

Plast Reconstr Surg Glob Open 2015 Oct 20;3(10):e539. Epub 2015 Oct 20.

Department of Surgical Sciences, Plastic Surgery Division, University of Parma, Parma, Italy; and the Cutaneous, Mininvasive, Regenerative and Plastic Surgery Unit, Parma University Hospital, Parma, Italy.

Unlabelled: Over the years, different kinds of hair transplantation have been compared in an attempt to overcome male pattern alopecia and, at the same time, maximize both the survival and growth rate of grafted hair. In this study, we have assessed the survival and growth rate of follicular units (FU) in an in vitro model, as compared with that of conventional hair micrografts, to experimentally evaluate and elaborate on the differences between these 2 approaches in hair transplantation procedures.

Methods: Group A (control; n = 100 follicles) was composed of hair micrografts, whereas FUs were assigned to Group B (experimental; n = 100 follicles, n = 35 FUs). Read More

Scars Burn Heal 2015 Jan-Dec;1:2059513115607764. Epub 2015 Oct 1.

Farjo Hair Institute, Manchester and London, UK.

Treating patients with burn alopecia or hair loss can often be a challenge to both the surgeon and the patient. As with other reconstructive procedures that are required in the post-burn phase, this is usually a multiple stage process often requiring surgery over several years. This is because graft take is not as reliable as in healthy non-scarred skin and may need repeating to achieve adequate density. Read More

Aesthet Surg J 2015 Nov 22;35(8):903-9. Epub 2015 Sep 22.

Dr Umar is a Clinical Instructor of Medicine, Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), Los Angeles, CA.

Background: Hairlines and temples can look unnatural due to coarseness of the safe donor area of transplanted scalp hair. Although the thinner caliber of nape and peri-auricular (NPA) hair would be ideal to create softer hairlines, they have not been used mainly because of concerns that they are nonpermanent.

Objective: We assessed the outcome of NPA hair transplanted to hairlines and temples in selected patients. Read More

Aesthet Surg J 2015 Nov 22;35(8):910-2. Epub 2015 Sep 22.

Dr Vogel is an Associate Professor of Surgery, Department of Plastic Surgery, The Johns Hopkins Hospital and School of Medicine, Baltimore, MD.

J Nurs Scholarsh 2015 Sep 28;47(5):425-34. Epub 2015 Jul 28.

Associate Professor, School of Nursing, Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, Beijing, China.

Purpose: Kidney transplant recipients require lifelong treatment with immunosuppressive medications to avoid graft rejection and graft loss. Symptoms experienced may influence recipients' perceived quality of life and medication adherence. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the symptom experience associated with immunosuppressive medications in adult kidney transplant recipients and to explore the association between the symptom experience and adherence to immunosuppressive medications. Read More

J Cutan Med Surg 2015 Jan-Feb;19(1):17-21. Epub 2015 Jan 1.

Department of Medicine, University of Toronto, Toronto, ON, and Mediprobe Research Inc., London, ON.

Background: Early surgical hair restoration (SHR) techniques were fraught with limitations. Major advancements and refinements have taken place yielding minimally invasive, relatively scar-free, and natural-looking hair transplantations.

Objective: Our aim was to review the origins and advancements of SHR and to discuss future directions for the field. Read More

J Tissue Eng Regen Med 2017 04 17;11(4):977-988. Epub 2015 Feb 17.

PhoenixBio Co. Ltd, Hiroshima, Japan.

We developed a nude rat model for determining the capacity of trichogenous cells to restore in vivo-damaged hair follicles (HFs). A surgical scalpel was inserted into the rat's dermis to generate the in vivo-damaged pelage HFs, the HFs whose lower parts were lost, but the upper parts containing sebaceous and bulge regions remained intact. Dermal papilla cells (DPCs) and dermal sheath cells (DSCs) from EGFP transgenic rat vibrissae were propagated in culture, and each alone (DPC or DSC) or a mixture (DPC/DSC) was transplanted into the intradermal path made by a scalpel. Read More

JAMA Facial Plast Surg 2014 Nov-Dec;16(6):444-50

Rousso Facial Plastic Surgery Clinic, Birmingham, Alabama.

Importance: Androgenetic alopecia is a highly prevalent condition that can profoundly impair the quality of life in both men and women.

Objective: To provide the up-to-date medical and surgical treatment options for patients with androgenetic alopecia.

Evidence Review: A Medline search of scientific literature was conducted from 1997 to 2013. Read More

Dermatol Surg 2014 Aug;40(8):926-8

Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetic Surgery, Centro di Chirurgia Ambulatoriale Maurizio Bufalini, Florence, Italy Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, University of Florence, Florence, Italy.

J Burn Care Res 2015 Mar-Apr;36(2):e18-22

From the *Children's Hospital at Westmead Burns Research Institute and the †Burns Unit, Douglas Cohen Department of Paediatric Surgery, Sydney Medical School, The University of Sydney, New South Wales, Australia.

Scalp burns in the pediatric population appear relatively uncommon, with most reported cases occurring in adults secondary to electrical burns. We reviewed our experience with the management of these injuries in children. A retrospective review was conducted at our institution from March 2004 to July 2011. Read More

Dermatol Online J 2014 Apr 16;20(4):22341. Epub 2014 Apr 16.

Mosaic Clinic Hair Transplant Center.

Hair transplants were developed and championed by dermatologists. However, dermatology literature has few contributions from within our specialty. In this manuscript, we present our evaluation of a specific graft harvesting approach for hair transplants referred to as Follicular unit extraction (FUE). Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Nov;21(4):675-80

Lam Institute for Hair Restoration, 6101 Chapel Hill Boulevard, Suite 101, Plano, TX 75093, USA. Electronic address:

Hair restoration requires a high level of specialized skill on the part of both the surgeon and the assistant team. Recipient-site problems can manifest from either surgeon or assistant error. The surgeon can create an unnatural hairline due to lack of knowledge of natural hair-loss patterns or badly executed recipient sites. Read More

Clin Plast Surg 2013 Oct;40(4):615-25

Willow Bend Wellness Center, 6101 Chapel Hill Boulevard, Suite 101, Plano, TX 75093, USA. Electronic address:

Hair restoration is an art and a science that requires an experienced and dedicated surgeon and team to achieve consistently superior outcomes. In addition to discussion of local anesthetic in use for hair restoration, this article emphasizes the pearls and pitfalls that are involved at every phase of the procedure including judgment, hairline design, donor harvesting, recipient-site creation, graft preparation, and graft placement. Two recent advances in the field are highlighted: the use of regenerative medicine (platelet-rich plasma and ACell), and developments in follicular-unit extraction as an alternative to traditional linear donor harvesting. Read More

Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol 2014 Aug 22;271(8):2159-64. Epub 2013 Sep 22.

Department of Otorhinolaryngology & Head and Neck Surgery, Eye and ENT Hospital, Fudan University, 83 Fenyang Road, Shanghai, 200031, China,

To evaluate and compare the scalp and the abdomen as split-thickness skin graft donor sites for aural stenosis repair. A total of 34 patients with aural stenosis were included in the study. All the patients underwent meatoplasty using split-thickness skin grafts. Read More

J Cutan Aesthet Surg 2013 Apr;6(2):100-5

Department of Dermatology and Venereology, National Skin Clinic, Dehradun, Uttarakhand, India.

Background: In hair transplantation, the survival rate of harvested grafts depends upon many factors like maintenance of hydration, cold temperature, reduced mechanical handling and asepsis. All these factors are favourably improved if time out of body is reduced significantly. We have tried a modification called direct hair transplantation in the existing follicular unit extraction technique, in which the follicular unit grafts are implanted as soon as they are harvested. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):469-77

Dermatology Division, Department of Medicine, University of California at Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA; DermHair Clinic, 819 North Harbor Drive, Suite 400, Redondo Beach, CA, USA. Electronic address:

For many hair restoration patients with limited scalp donor hair it is possible to use nonhead hair sources to increase the potential follicle supply. Follicular unit extraction provides the hair restoration surgeon with a useful surgical means for accessing this valuable source of donor reserve. Nonhead hair can also be used to restore eyebrows, eyelashes, and moustaches. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):457-67

Private Practice, Foundation for Hair Restoration, 6280 Sunset Drive, Suite 504, Miami, FL 33143, USA; Private Practice, Foundation for Hair Restoration, 60 East 56th Street, 3rd Floor, New York City, NY 10021, USA; University of Miami, FL, USA. Electronic address:

Refinements in hair transplantation techniques allow the experienced surgeon to create natural-appearing facial hair transplants. Restoring eyebrows, beards/goatees, and sideburns have all become popular procedures, and the results can be outstanding. This article provides a comprehensive review of hair grafting techniques to achieve the best results in restoring various hair-bearing areas of the face, including the eyebrows, beard/goatee, and sideburns, and repairing the alopecic scarring from prior facial plastic surgery. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):449-55

Carolina Dermatology Hair Center, 10650 Park Road, Suite 310, Charlotte, NC 28210, USA. Electronic address:

Excellent surgical results and high patient satisfaction with hair transplantation depend on attaining optimal growth. Unfortunately, even experienced surgeons acknowledge that graft survival often is not as high as is commonly stated. Hair transplant surgeons should be thoroughly familiar with the many variables that affect graft survival and refine their surgical techniques accordingly. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):431-6

Farjo Hair Institute, 70 Quay Street, Manchester M3 3EJ, UK; Farjo Hair Institute, 152 Harley Street, London W1G 7LH, UK. Electronic address:

Dense packing is the philosophy of fitting more than 30 to 35 follicular unit grafts per square centimeter in one operation. The aim is to produce a more even, consistent, and natural looking flow of hair after just one procedure. Although desirable in principle, not all patients are suitable candidates nor is it possible to achieve in certain patients (eg, coarse or curly hair). Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):419-30

Gabel Hair Restoration Center, 900 Southeast Oak Street, Suite 201, Hillsboro, OR 97123, USA. Electronic address:

Surgical hair restoration allows male and female patients to achieve aesthetically natural results. The term megasession refers to transplanting greater then 3000 follicular unit grafts in a single procedure. By transplanting a large number of grafts, megasessions are capable of definitively treating a significant area of the scalp in 1 session. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):375-84

Hair Sciences Center of Colorado, 5445 DTC Parkway, Suite 1015, Greenwood Village, CO 80111, USA. Electronic address:

The purpose of this article is to introduce the reader to the topic of follicular unit extraction (FUE) and to present an overview of the value of FUE to patients and physicians. In addition to this, the various methods and instrumentation for performing this method of graft harvest are discussed as well as some of the technique's inherent advantages and disadvantages. Topics unique to FUE, including body hair grafting, plug/minigrafts repair, and donor area management are addressed as well. Read More

Facial Plast Surg Clin North Am 2013 Aug;21(3):363-74

Private Practice, Facial Plastic Surgery, Kansas City, MO, USA. Electronic address:

The strip technique remains the most popular method of harvesting grafts. The challenge in every patient is to maximize the number of grafts while minimizing the scar. Fortunately, there are many ways to ensure that the donor site will be inconspicuous. Read More

J Cosmet Dermatol 2013 Sep;12(3):223-31

Cosmolaser Medical Centre, Sharjah, UAE.

Society places great emphasis on the presence of hair. Some degree of hair loss is accepted as a normal part of the aging process, in line with the observation that more than 50% of men will develop androgenetic alopecia by the age of 50 years. However, it is possible to understand the psychosocial isolation and distress felt by men with a strong familial predisposition to androgenetic alopecia, who tend to display hair loss in their late teens or twenties. Read More

Vet Dermatol 2013 Oct 19;24(5):507-e120. Epub 2013 Jul 19.

Department of Medicine and Clinical Biology of Small Animals, Ghent University, Salisburylaan 133, 9820, Merelbeke, Belgium.

Background: Recurrent flank alopecia is a clinically well-described skin disorder in dogs. The pathomechanism of the disease is difficult to study because it undergoes spontaneous regression.

Hypothesis/objectives: To study the behaviour of xenografts in mice in order to assess the feasibility of a reproducible experimental model and to investigate local or systemic causes of canine recurrent flank alopecia (cRFA). Read More

J Invest Dermatol 2014 Jan 10;134(1):264-266. Epub 2013 Jun 10.

Division of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, USA; The Jackson Laboratory, Department of Basic Research, Bar Harbor, Maine, USA. Electronic address:

Ann Plast Surg 2014 Dec;73(6):668-9

From the *Departments of Plastic Surgery and †Surgery, University Hospital Center Zagreb, Zagreb; and ‡Department of Surgery, General Hospital Karlovac, Karlovac, Croatia.

Large scalp defects can present as a challenging clinical problem for a reconstructive surgeon. We present a patient with a large scalp defect following an infection after neurosurgical treatment. Reconstruction of a defect was performed using a free latissimus dorsi flap with split-thickness skin graft. Read More

Dermatol Surg 2013 May 3;39(5):801-4. Epub 2013 Apr 3.

Aesthet Surg J 2013 Jan 20;33(1):128-51. Epub 2012 Nov 20.

Department of Plastic Surgery, The Johns Hopkins Hospital and School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland, USA.

Hair restoration is a highly sophisticated subspecialty that offers significant relief to patients with hair loss. An improved understanding of the aesthetics of hair loss and cosmetic hair restoration, hair anatomy and physiology, and the development of microvascular surgical instrumentation has revolutionized the approach to surgical hair restoration since the original description. Additional elements that contribute to the current state of the art in hair restoration include graft size, site creation, packing density, and medical control of hair loss. Read More

Dermatol Clin 2013 Jan 11;31(1):119-27. Epub 2012 Oct 11.

Department of Dermatology, Dermatology and Plastic Surgery Institute, Cleveland Clinic, 9500 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44195, USA.

Female pattern hair loss (FPHL) is the most common cause of alopecia in women. FPHL is characterized histologically with increased numbers of miniaturized, velluslike hair follicles. The goal of treatment of FPHL is to arrest hair loss progression and stimulate hair regrowth. Read More

Arch Dermatol 2012 Aug;148(8):931-4

Section of Dermatology, Department of Medicine, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois 60637, USA.

Background: Diffuse alopecia areata or canities subita is a rare variant of alopecia in which hair loss is associated with regrowth of white hairs and possible lightening of the skin. Preferential loss of pigmented hair in this disorder may be related to the melanin pigment system and/or melanocytes. Acquired generalized anhidrosis can be associated with autoimmune disease, cancer, graft-vs-host disease, or medications or can be idiopathic. Read More

Int Surg 2011 Oct-Dec;96(4):345-51

Damkerng Hair Transplantation Clinic, ISHRS Approved Fellowship Training Center, Bangkok, Thailand.

Hair restoration has emerged as a subspecialty of aesthetic plastic surgery practiced by a wide range of doctors including plastic surgeons, general surgeons, dermatologists, and even general practitioners. As a current trend, most doctors practice "Ultrarefined follicular unit hair transplantation" in which the entire procedure is done precisely with minimal donor scar. In selected cases, Mega or even Giga sessions are now done with natural appearance and almost undetectable scar, in a single session with good density. Read More

Ann Dermatol Venereol 2012 Jun 17;139(6-7):468-71. Epub 2012 Apr 17.

Clinique dermatologique, hôpital Civil, centre hospitalier universitaire de Strasbourg, 1, place de l'Hôpital, BP 426, 67091 Strasbourg cedex, France.

Background: Foxn1 transcription factor deficit leads to immune deficiency, with hair and nail abnormalities. We report the case of a patient also presenting localized leucoderma.

Case Report: A 3-year-old boy underwent thymus transplantation at the age of 9 months for Foxn1 deficiency. Read More

Actas Dermosifiliogr 2012 Mar 26;103(2):163-4. Epub 2011 Aug 26.

Facial Plast Surg 2011 Aug 26;27(4):366-77. Epub 2011 Jul 26.

Academic Alliance in Dermatology, Tampa, Florida 33609, USA.

Hair restoration began as a result of the fortuitous finding by Dr. Norman Orentreich that hair follicles taken from an area of nonbalding scalp could be implanted into an area of male pattern hair loss and continue to grow terminal hair. Since that time, hair transplants have progressed from the use of large plugs to the use of follicular units (normally occurring clusters of hairs). Read More

J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg 2012 Apr 20;65(4):e87-9. Epub 2011 Jul 20.

Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Karadeniz Technical University, Faculty of Medicine, Trabzon, Turkey.

Follicular unit extraction (FUE) has been developed as one type of follicular unit transplantation surgery, a widely accepted hair-restoration technique. FUE has many advantages, including a small donor area scar, less pain and a slender graft without extra surrounding tissue. Complications are uncommon in the literature. Read More