PRP Hair Restoration
What is Platelet-Rich Plasma Hair Restoration?
PRP Hair Restoration is a state of the art, non-surgical, totally natural, alternative medical procedure used for the treatment of hair loss or hair thinning in both men and women. It uses Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) derived from one’s blood and prepared in our office at the time of treatment.
PRP treatment has been used for many years to facilitate wound healing, including the acceleration of healing of tendon injuries, the treatment of osteoarthritis, in some aspects of dentistry (i.e. jaw reconstruction), in cardiovascular medicine, and plastic surgery.
In recent years, PRP therapy was introduced as a method of non-surgical skin rejuvenation (Vampire Facial & Facelift), and as a safe and effective treatment option for male and female pattern hair loss.
How does PRP benefit the hair?
Each strand of hair sits in a tiny hole (cavity) in the skin called a follicle. In general, baldness occurs when the hair follicle shrinks over time, resulting in shorter and finer hair (hair miniaturization). Eventually, the follicle does not grow new hair. The follicles remain alive though, which suggests that it is still capable to grow new hair if stimulated.
Platelets are cells that are designed to heal injuries through their richness of growth factors like platelet derived growth factor (PDGF), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), transforming growth factor (TGF) and other bioactive proteins.
Platelet rich plasma (PRP) is concentrated blood plasma containing approximately three to five times the number of platelets found in normal circulating blood.
PRP rich in growth factors has the ability to stimulate the hair follicles to regrow hair, thereby reversing the hair miniaturization seen in the common baldness (androgenetic alopecia).
How is the treatment performed?
PRP is obtained from a small amount of blood drawn and processed in our office.
PRP is than injected with a very thin, small needle all over the treatment area of the scalp.
Number of treatments and results
When used to stimulate hair growth most doctors schedule 4-6 sessions at intervals of 1 to 3 months, followed by maintenance treatments every 6 months.
Some improvement (in reversing miniaturization) can be expected in the first 2-6 months.
The treatments must be continued periodically to maintain improvement.
Does PRP work?
In the field of hair restoration, evidence supports PRP therapy as a promising treatment option to promote hair growth.
Individual results vary with each patient.
Yet PRP for hair loss is a relatively new treatment with a limited number of scientific studies to show its efficacy. No guarantees of success can be made with PRP for hair loss. No claim of PRP efficacy in promoting hair growth can be made because there is no FDA approval that would allow such claims to be made.
On the other hand recent studies indicate patients do respond well to PRP therapy.
Can I use other medical therapies concurrently?
Yes. We recommend PRP therapy along with current FDA approved therapies such as DHT blockers (Propecia, Finasteride) and Minoxidil, or as a stand alone for those patients who can not tolerate these medications.