PRP Hair Treatment
PRP for Hair Stimulation and Growth
In the medical treatment of male and female pattern baldness (androgenetic alopecia), PRP can be injected into the balding scalp to potentially stimulate thin (miniaturized) hair to grow into thicker (terminal) hairs. This is a relatively newer application of PRP.
Who is a Candidate?
PRP can be a great choice for patients who notice significantly reduced or thinning hair or who have already maximized other medical therapies6. Patients with thinning, but not totally bald, areas would be the best candidates. The use of activated PRP (using calcium to stimulate the PRP prior to injection) is now becoming more widely used as patients are getting better results with less treatments.
What is Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)?
Platelet rich plasma (PRP) has been well established in fields like: dentistry, wound healing and orthopedic surgery. It involves drawing one’s blood then isolating the platelet rich portion for use in medical therapy. Platelets were once thought to only help with blood clotting, but we now understand that they secrete valuable cytokines (cell messengers) and growth factors, including but not limited to the following:
- Platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)
- Transforming growth factor (TGF)
- Vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF)
- Insulin-like growth factor (IGF)
- Epidermal growth factor (EGF)
- Interleukin-1 (IL-1)
It is conjectured that the introduction of these substances, platelet rich plasma (PRP) can amplify the body’s naturally-occurring wound healing mechanism and stimulate regeneration of tissues.
Advantages of PRP Hair Stimulation Therapy
- This procedure is very safe. PRP is completely autologous (derived from your own body) and does not introduce any foreign drugs or chemicals to your body.
- There are no drug interactions
- It does not require any lab testing
- No allergies have been reported
- The procedure requires just 45-60 minutes and can be done in the office under local (injectable/topical) anesthesia.
Role of Microneedling for Hair Stimulation
There is evidence that skin wounding (microneedling) alone can contribute to hair regrowth. This is based on mouse studies showing hair follicle regeneration after wounding. Clinical studies have also shown successful hair regrowth using micro needling in men who failed to respond to other therapies. While the scalp is anesthetized, we recommend also making use of this additional method of hair regrowth.
