Dr. Woods Offers New Remote Assessment Tool for Hair Transplants

Dulwich Hill, New South Wales − Dr. Ray Woods, inventor of the Follicular Unit Extraction hair transplant method, offers his latest idea to better communicate with patients.

The Baldness Donor Ratio Method (BDR) is a tool to help open the understanding between the health professional and the person seeking a hair transplant.

With the increasing popularity of Internet consultation and cosmetic tourism, misunderstanding during a remote assessment is possible. The current photographs and Norwood Scale of assessment do not convey all the characteristics of an individual’s head. Heads vary in shape and size, therefore hair loss patterns do not tell the whole story.

There are also limitations of the available donor hair. The hair and skin tone; the density of the donor site; the diameter of the hair shaft and the pre-existing hair on the bald site should all be considered before a doctor can give a clear evaluation of the process and the success of a hair replacement treatment.

The Baldness Donor Ratio Method provides a systematic method to collect descriptors that affect the cosmetic outcome of hair transplant treatment. They aim to:
• Provide more accurate assessments leading to predictable patient outcomes
• Provide organized evaluation and comparison for more reliable second opinions
• Provide a systematic recording method in patient records
• Provide a transparent and reproducible approach to patient assessment and costing
• Provide patient with common descriptions so that they can understand and discuss their treatments
• Provide the patient with realistic expectations of the cosmetic outcome of their hair transplant experience

The BDR Method is a two part evaluation. First the patient completes a quantitative assessment of their balding areas. For instance, is the balding area bigger than the donor area? The higher the ratio of bald to donor, the less donor hair there is for transplant.

Then they complete a qualitative assessment of their skin and hair characteristics. They evaluate how thick the donor hair is. The thicker the hair, the more hair is available for transplant. Then they determine if they have fine, medium or thick hair shafts. The thicker the shafts, the more dense is the hair coverage. Next, they evaluate the difference in contrast between the skin and the hair. Black hair and white skin would have the most contrast.

Lastly, they evaluate how densely the balding spots are covered – zero, sparse, medium. This provides a good description of the patient’s hair quality and quantity when compared to the attached chart. This method helps increase the clinicians’ accuracy in determining the eventual outcome of the hair transplant surgery.

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Dr Ray Woods
275 Old Canterbury Road,
Dulwich Hill NSW 2203
Ph: 1300 655 543
Ph: +612 9560 0111
Fax: +612 9560 1986


Email: info@woodstechnique.com.au
www.woodstechnique.com.au


Dr Ray Woods M.B.,B.S.,Dip.Obst
Dr. Ray Woods graduated from Sydney University Medical School in 1982. He had wide experience in many areas of medicine including Neurosurgery, Obstetrics, and Internal Medicine, trauma, skin cancer surgery and cosmetic dermatological surgery. However, he maintained a fascination with the concept of hair transplantation since he was 17 years old, and in 1989 decided to investigate the process.
Dr. Woods had envisaged the discipline to be a process of microsurgical follicular extraction, but found that worldwide best practice was extremely different and far removed from his vision. After witnessing close friends suffer the physical and psychological trauma of disfiguring hair transplant surgery, he began research and experimentation to create a new minimally invasive microsurgical follicular single unit extraction process, which did not exist anywhere in the world. As his work progressed, many thought his concept was impossible and impractical. Along with creating this new discipline, it was paramount to Dr. Woods to set new standards in ethics and accountability. Every aspect of this discipline was explored, developed and perfected, including intricate and complicated scar repair previously thought to be untreatable.
In 1995 the procedure was already achieving nationwide recognition in Australia, and in 1996 he presented to the Australian Association of Trichologists annual meeting. The procedure became known as “The Woods Technique” and was shown on an Australian national television medical program in April 1997. Many international publications and websites reported on the extraordinary breakthroughs. A second national television documentary was shown in March 2000 and demonstrated the cure of a cancer victim’s radiation scar to the scalp.
Further “world’s first” breakthroughs came in 1999 when Dr. Woods began transplanting body hair onto the scalp of balding men and those with severe scarring. The procedure was a great success but it was not until August 2002 that Dr. Woods realized that body hair transplanted to the head assumes the characteristics of normal scalp hair and grows to normal scalp lengths. This is one of the most innovative discoveries in dermatology, as well as hair transplant surgery.
In April 2002, Dr Ray Woods and Dr Woods Campbell held a seminar in Los Angeles, attended by some of the leading hair transplant authorities and doctors in the USA. Further seminars in October 2002, March 2003 and December 2003 were held in LA and New York. Their work has been showcased on numerous occasions on US television, as well as radio, journals, websites and newspapers around the world.
Dr. Ray Woods created an irreversible world wide trend toward minimally invasive microsurgical hair transplant surgery, and is recognized internationally as the innovator and world’s most experienced and leading expert in the field of Follicular Single Unit Extraction hair transplantation and related scar repair and body hair to scalp transplants.






Woods Tech article
follicular hair unit transplant/fue hair transplant/fue hair transplant surgeon/body hair transplant

Hair Transplant Techniques and How They Work

Are you considering a hair transplant? There are several types.

First, understand that hair transplants are not a new technique. Board certified plastic surgeons have been doing them for more than 30 years. Note, however, that all surgery does have some risks. The complete series of surgeries may take up to two years to complete. Make sure you understand your surgeon’s plans:
Procedures selected
Risks and costs of each step
Surgery preparation
Types of anesthesia
How long each stage will take
Your appearance after each stage
Length of healing

Grafts or Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE)
In general, hair transplants are grafts of hair-bearing skin relocated to a bald or thinning area. These grafts can be micro grafts of one or two hairs, mini-grafts of two to four hairs, punch grafts of 10 to 15 hairs, slit grafts of four to 10 hairs, and the largest grafts –strip grafts that contain 30 to 40 hairs and are long and thin.

Your surgeon will remove the small implants of hair-bearing scalp with surgical instruments. He/she will transplant them into prepared sites in the balding areas, usually beginning in the front. Punch sites may require a single stitch to close, while the smaller donor sites will heal on their own, the small scars hidden by surrounding hair.

For a couple of days you may need to wear a pressure bandage, however, lots of hair transplant patients heal bandage-free.

Flap Surgery
About two months after beginning the use of a skin expanding technique where a tissue expander slowly stretches the scalp skin, it will be large enough to be lifted and attached to the bald area. One advantage of this method is that a large amount of hair is moved at one time and remains attached to its blood supply.

Scalp Reduction
Scalp reduction is used to cover the back and top of the bald head. A piece of bald scalp is removed to make room for the hair-bearing skin. This technique offers some tightness and pain.

Look on the Web and talk to hair replacement surgeons before making your decision.

Contact Information

Dr Ray Woods

M.B.,B.S.,Dip.Obst

Dr Ray Woods

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