We often find solutions to everyday problems in the most unlikely of ways – today, I’m excited to share one of them from a study tackling hair loss with platelet rich plasma (PRP). If you think back to your biology classes in high school, you may recall that PRP is what’s responsible for our blood clotting. And if you’re a frequent reader of the blog, PRP may ring a bell because it’s also used in our “vampire” facials in Nashville! As a concentration of just one type of cell (platelets), its combination with plasma has proven to be extremely useful for recruiting new cells.
Androgenetic hair loss may be a condition that benefits from some PRP love, according to a recent study. But what’s androgenetic hair loss, you wonder? This condition happens over time with age, due to hair follicle exposure to hormones – specifically, testosterone. While men and women both suffer with this type of hair loss, men will often bald whereas women tend to have thinning of the hair with various degrees of scalp exposure.
When it comes to solutions, let’s just say that options for my Nashville patients have been scarce. Initially, Finasteride used to be prescribed for men, but in recent years it has become associated with a significant percentage of permanent impotence, so we avoid doing so in Nashville unless a male patient is thoroughly aware of the risk and decides to proceed. It gets worse: for women, there is no medication that compares to the effectiveness of Finasteride. So far, the only remaining option has been over the counter Minoxidil, a daily topical treatment that has seen mixed results.
But enough with the doom and gloom and back to the magic of PRP: in a recent study carried out where five PRP injections (in growth factors) were administered to 19 patients with androgenetic alopecia, the following positive results were found a year after following up:
– Increased mean hair density and diameter
– Epidermal thickness
– Increased cell production
– Patients declared overall positive satisfaction
– Comparisons between photos taken before and after treatment showed a high clinical improvement score
Promising, right? I attended a lecture at the American Academy of Dermatology National Meeting where the lecturers talked about this treatment, albeit with mixed feelings. It does sound positive, but so far, it does not necessarily work for all patients – just some. However, given that there are many different way to administer this treatment, I am very excited by this prospect and look forward to future studies to better define a technique that will deliver consistent results for my patients in Nashville.
If you’d like to book an appointment with a dermatologist to discuss your options for hair loss treatment and create a comprehensive plan for you, feel free to visit any of our Skin Solutions Dermatology branches in Nashville, Franklin, Columbia, Smyrna, Hendersonville or Pulaski to chat with our amazing team of dermatology specialists! Take advantage of our online booking system and book an appointment today.
Source: Dermatologic Surgery