METHOD AND APPARATUS FOR EXTRACTION OF FOLICULAR UNITS
A punch for drilling around a follicular unit may be provided. The punch may include an elongated cylindrical tubing having a proximal end, a distal end and a central lumen therebetween. The punch may further include a bulging body with an elongated cylindrical portion at a distal end and an about 45 degree sloping conical portion at a proximal end. The punch may further include an elongated handle having a proximal end and a distal end.
There are various medical and cosmetic procedures that are performed now using handheld and automated tools for hair transplantation as disclosed below for reference.
Hair transplantation by strip method is widely performed. Typically, it involves removing a strip of graft of scalp from a donor region of the patient, which extends from ear to ear located in the occipital region at the back of the head. The strip of graft taken from the donor area is dissected under microscope, where a person can separate about 300 grafts per hour. However, some hair follicles may be damaged during microscopic dissection and harvesting. It is laborious and time consuming.
The long incision made at the back of the patient for removing strip of graft from the donor area located from ear to ear. The graft area of the patient is stitched together, and normally leaves a visible scar. The hair that grows around the scar cannot be shortened or combed and causes significant cosmetic deformity. Sometimes, the process of skin grafting may result in complications resulting in injuries to the arteries which supply the blood to the scar and thus create pain, numbness, paresthesia and ischemia to the scar tissue. It may require more surgery to correct the problem and would result in creating more scars.
Another technique, called follicular unit extraction (FUE), uses a 1 mm punch for coring through the dermis and epidermis and then extracting a follicular unit by forceps from the donor area. This method results in high transaction rate due to lack of control of angle of entry and depth of the punch and sometime makes visible scars.
A machine, called a PCID (programmable Cole isolation device), and a sharp, programmable punch, called a PID (Cole isolation device), that limits the depth to just below the attachment of the arrector pili muscle for hair transplants. This punch is programmed to drill a graft at a specific angle by oscillation and rotation and reverse action.
Still another known process utilizes a sharp punch to score the skin and separate follicular unit from the scalp. In order to avoid transaction, the sharp punch of about 1 mm diameter is inserted to a limited depth of about 0.3 mm to 1.5mm, then a 1 mm diameter blunt punch is used about 4 mm to 6 mm deep enough to loosen the graft and removes the follicular unit with forceps.
Another known system, called the ARTAS SYSTEM, discloses a “RESTORATION RONOTICS” which includes a punch of 1.65 mm diameter and capable of extraction of 600 grafts per hour. This system also uses a dull punch, and this system is limited to a square area.
As noted above, the instruments, devices and machines are complex, expensive, and time consuming. Thus, there is a need for a new method and apparatus which is simpler, cheaper and more efficient.
SUMMARYA punch for drilling around a follicular unit may be provided. The punch may include an elongated cylindrical tubing having a proximal end, a distal end and a central lumen therebetween. The punch may further include a bulging body with an elongated cylindrical portion at a distal end and an about 45 degree sloping conical portion at a proximal end. The punch may further include an elongated handle having a proximal end and a distal end.
The present embodiments are illustrated by way of example and not limitation in the figures of the accompanying drawings, in which like references indicate similar elements and in which:
Aspects of the invention are disclosed in the following description and related drawings directed to specific embodiments of the invention. Alternate embodiments may be devised without departing from the spirit or the scope of the invention. Additionally, well-known elements of exemplary embodiments of the invention will not be described in detail or will be omitted so as not to obscure the relevant details of the invention. Further, to facilitate an understanding of the description, a discussion of several terms used herein follows.
As used herein, the word “exemplary” means “serving as an example, instance or illustration.” The embodiments described herein are not limiting, but rather are exemplary only. It should be understood that the described embodiments are not necessarily to be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments. Moreover, the terms “embodiments of the invention”, “embodiments” or “invention” do not require that all embodiments of the invention include the discussed feature, advantage or mode of operation.
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Exemplary
Before starting a drilling procedure, a patient can be positioned in a prone position, which is considered a simple and safe method to improve oxygenation and comfortable position, and then a tumescent solution can be injected into the papillary dermis. The injected tumescent solution may flow further into the reticular dermis, but may not penetrate the hair follicle. For example, penetration of the hair follicle may be avoided because of a sheath around the follicle. However the tumescent solution can compress the hair follicle circumferentially. This procedure can stretch and harden the patient's skin, including a fatty layer 30, a dermis layer 31, and an epidermis layer 32 at a top portion, and can compress around a hair follicular unit which includes about two hair follicles.
Exemplary
Exemplary
The length of the elongated cylindrical tubing 44 of the punch can be variable and may be selected based on the size of a sebaceous gland, which often ranges from 3 mm to 4 mm or more in thickness. The diameter of the punch barrel can be sized based on thickness of a hair measured in micrometers which is about 0.75 μmm, about 0.80 μmm, about 0.85 μmm or about 0.90 μmm. In some exemplary embodiments, however, the cylindrical portion 41 with a conical portion 42 can limit the entry of the punch tubing 44 into the skin. In some exemplary embodiments, selecting a 45 degree sloping conical portion 42 may be based on the angle of hair exiting from the skin. Such an angle may be detrimental in controlling the angle of the entry of the punch and also stabilizing the movement of operation when drilling through the skin. The length of the handle 46 is about 23.25 mm and the diameter is about 2.4 mm, which is the longest component of the punch 40, although variations in size and shape may be made, as desired.
Exemplary
Advantages of disclosed methods and apparatuses may be numerous. For example, they may provide fast healing, non-invasive procedure, no visible scaring, no post-operative pain, decrease in follicular units transaction, scalp is ready for another session, operation is not dependent on skin laxity, less staff is required, does not need microscope, less time spent on grafting, easy and friendly procedure, cheaper, no complications such as, necrosis, numbness on the back of the head, requires no prior estimation as a follicular unit extracted from the donor and planted in the balding region, white hair can benefit from this procedure, less staff is needed and provides more dense packing. These and other benefits of the present invention may become readily apparent to those of skill in the art.
The foregoing description and accompanying figures illustrate the principles, preferred embodiments and modes of operation of the invention. However, the invention should not be construed as being limited to the particular embodiments discussed above. Additional variations of the embodiments discussed above will be appreciated by those skilled in the art.
Therefore, the above-described embodiments should be regarded as illustrative rather than restrictive. Accordingly, it should be appreciated that variations to those embodiments can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as defined by the following claims.
Claims
1. A punch for drilling around a follicular unit comprising:
- an elongated cylindrical tubing having a proximal end, a distal end and a central lumen therebetween;
- a bulging body comprising an elongated cylindrical portion at a distal end and a 45 degree sloping conical portion at a proximal end; and
- an elongated handle having a proximal end and a distal end.
2. A punch for drilling according to claim 1, wherein a sharp cutting edge is located at the proximal end of the cylindrical tubing, having an internal diameter less than the outer diameter, defined as a tip, wherein the tip is capable of punching a hole around a follicular unit for extraction.
3. A punch for drilling according to claim 1, wherein the elongated cylindrical portion comprises a transverse bore of 3.16 mm diameter therethrough for removing any occluded skin tissue.
4. A punch for drilling according to claim 3, wherein the central lumen is extended into the transverse bore in the elongated cylindrical portion.
5. A punch for drilling according to claim 1, wherein the proximal end of sloping conical portion is connected to the distal end of the elongated cylindrical tubing, and wherein the sloping conical portion limits the drilling depth.
6. A punch for drilling according to claim 5, wherein the sloping conical portion generally conforms to an angle of emergence of a hair protruding out of an epidermis layer and further the sloping portion of the punch resting on the skin stabilizes the movement of hand while drilling.
7. A punch for drilling according to claim 1, wherein the proximal end of the elongated handle is connected to the distal end of the elongated cylindrical portion, and wherein the distal end of the elongated handle is connected to a micromotor for manipulation of drilling.
8. A punch for drilling according to claim 5, wherein the drilling depth is limited to a sebaceous gland thickness.
Type: Application
Filed: Apr 11, 2014
Publication Date: Oct 15, 2015
Inventor: Balen Mohammedamin Abdullah (Erbil-Kurdistan)
Application Number: 14/250,691