09 Sep What is PRP Hair Restoration?
In 2019, Mayo Clinic reported “Platelet Rich Plasma Found to be Effective in Regrowing Hair.” The world-renowned clinic had just conducted a randomized control trial to study the alopecia treatment also known as PRP hair restoration. Mayo researchers studied 19 women suffering from female pattern baldness. The trial gave them PRP scalp injections for 12 weeks. Researchers used a high resolution camera and special software to digitally count the women’s hairs and measure their hair’s thickness and density. According to Shane Shapiro, M.D., medical director of Mayo Clinic’s Regenerative Medicine Therapeutics Suites, “Many dermatology, cosmetic and regenerative medicine practices commonly promote PRP’s hair regenerating effect, but more study was needed to prove this. Our research supports current literature confirming that PRP is effective in increasing overall hair count.” The trial determined that topical application of minoxidil (the most common treatment for alopecia) also helped regrow hair but found that “overall patient satisfaction was higher when treated with PRP than the minoxidil treatment.” This was a major confirmation of a treatment that has been gaining a lot of positive interest all over the world.
What is Androgenetic Alopecia?
Androgenetic alopecia is the most common kind of hair loss in men and women. Some 50 million men and 30 million women in the United States suffer from male pattern baldness or female pattern baldness. It can start at a young age but is likely to begin after the age of 50, when most men will experience some amount of hair loss.
In men, the hair loss usually occurs in a well-defined pattern, starting above the temples. The hairline recedes in a distinctive “M” shape. Hair thins near the top of the head, usually leading to partial or complete baldness.
With female-pattern baldness, hair thins all over the scalp, but the hairline does not recede. It’s most likely to begin during or after menopause. It rarely leads to total baldness, but since the stigma of baldness can be more severe with women, this can cause them more distress than it does with men.
Alopecia has a variety of causes:
- Aging
- Hormonal changes
- Telogen effluvium (shedding of hair due to illness)
- Genetic history of baldness
- Burns or other injuries to the scalp
- Sudden weight loss
- Ringworm of the scalp
- Deficiency of protein or iron
- Excessive intake of vitamin A
- Chemotherapy or other harsh medications
- Lupus or other medical conditions
There are several treatments for alopecia, including:
- Topical medications such as minoxidil or finasteride
- Skin grafts or lifts
- Corticosteroid injections
- Treatment of underlying conditions
- Hair transplant procedures
- Scalp reduction surgery
All of the above treatments are limited in efficacy, and some are expensive and/or invasive, hence the need for a better solution to hair loss.
What Exactly is PRP?
There are four primary components of blood: red blood cells, white blood cells, plasma, and platelets. PRP stands for platelet-rich plasma. It involves plasma, the liquid portion of blood; and platelets, blood cells essential for various healing processes throughout the body such as clotting. Platelets stimulate cell reproduction, and trigger tissue regeneration. Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) refers to blood with a high number of platelets.
To create PRP, specialists take some blood from the patient and put it into a centrifuge to rapidly spin it. Since platelets have a different weight than other components of the blood, this spinning process creates plasmas with high and low ratios of platelets that can be separated. The platelet-rich plasma, with about five times more platelets than regular blood, is then retained. This plasma is examined by a clinician and may be processed again if necessary.
PRP therapy has been used for a variety of purposes for several decades, including:
- Tendon, ligament, muscle, and joint injuries – PRP injections have been used for a range of musculoskeletal issues, including tendinitis and chronic tendon injuries like tennis elbow. PRP shots can help improve mobility, stimulate healing and reduce pain for people suffering from rotator cuff injuries.
- Post-surgical recovery – PRP was first used by doctors to speed healing after plastic surgeries and jaw procedures.
- Osteoarthritis – PRP therapies may help reduce the pain and stiffness of osteoarthritis by reducing inflammation.
Doctors sometimes use ultrasound technology to ensure they’re injecting PRP into the right place.
How PRP Helps Hair Growth
Doctors began using PRP after researchers discovered that high concentrations of platelets in plasma cells can help promote hair growth by prolonging the growing phase of the hair cycle. When injected deep enough in the scalp to reach the bottom of the hair follicle, PRP can stimulate a special type of cell called dermal papilla cells, which play an important role in hair growth. Some researchers theorize that PRP injections stimulate natural hair growth and sustain it by increasing blood flow to the hair follicle, which increases hair thickness.
Doctors usually perform injections every month for three months. Then they typically administer more injections every three to four months, for a year or two. The exact schedule will be determined by a patient’s genetics, hair pattern, their amount of hair loss, their age, their hormonal conditions, as well as how their hair responds to the treatment. Sometimes this approach is combined with other hair loss procedures or medications.
There has been little research into the effectiveness of PRP for less common kinds of hair loss, such as alopecia areata (autoimmune-related hair loss), telogen effluvium (stress-related hair loss), or scarring hair loss, so treatments have been mostly used for androgenetic alopecia, which describes most cases of hair loss.
PRP Compared to Hair Transplants or Scalp Reduction Surgery
Hair transplantation has been a fairly common way to treat hair loss, but it’s a surgical procedure that is lengthy and expensive. Unlike PRP, which involves only a blood draw and injections, hair transplantation involves making incisions into the scalp, which can leave scars and involve a long recovery time. Because of these factors, doctors usually recommend hair transplantation only for people who suffer from dramatic hair loss. Some clinicians have performed PRP therapy for patients before transplantation, but of course the combination of treatments is costly. Scalp reduction surgery has many of the same drawbacks as hair transplantation surgery.
Call Bare Brilliance Aesthetics Today
For more information on PRP therapy, call Bare Brilliance Aesthetics, a clinic based in Windsor & Chiswick that offers surgical and non-surgical treatments. Founder Aungelique O’Regan is a qualified advanced aesthetic practitioner with a passion for helping people achieve their personal goals. Her previous experience over the years including ventures into dental nursing and health and wellness has led her to the launch of Bare Brilliance, an aesthetic non-surgical cosmetic practice.
Her promise to you:
– You will always be treated as an individual with dignity and respect.
– She will only use well-established, reputable products from leading brands.
– She will use the most up-to-date injection techniques to make treatments safer, more comfortable and less likely to cause trauma to the skin.
– Treatments are carried out in a clinical environment.
– Her aim is never to over treat but to give you a natural and refreshed look.
A safe pair of hands: my expertise
Aungelique’s commitment to being up to date with the very latest techniques and methods is one which has seen her attend over twenty seminars and successfully complete numerous training courses in non-surgical cosmetic procedures; all of these via accredited and internationally renowned institutions. These include safe practice, basic life support and infection control. Ensuring client safety is a number one priority. To this end, Aungelique is licensed, insured and trained in complications and medical emergencies. She is also an active member of the Association of Cosmetic Practitioners of Britain.
Call Bare Brilliance Aesthetics on 07796 093196
Or email us at info@barebrilliance.co.uk
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