Hair loss is a major concern for many men and women, whether it is genetic, caused by bad haircare or a medical condition. The good news is that with advances in the field and adequate research, various new techniques have cropped up in the market which can combat the condition with ease.
Among them is the latest Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) therapy, a revolutionary procedure designed to utilise your own platelet blood cells to activate dormant hair follicles and improve thinning hair. The minimally invasive treatment has been utilised in medical procedures, as well as in the field of cosmetic enhancement, for many years. The plasma inside human blood contains a number of growth factors that can stimulate stem cells. Isolation of platelet rich plasma has traditionally been used to help speed natural wound healing by repairing and regenerating cells, and now it can be applied to hair restoration as well.
The PRP therapy can reverse thinning hair and reactivate hair follicles in the treatment area, which can ultimately result in a normal growth pattern and a fuller head of hair. The process starts when a patient’s blood is drawn and spun in a centrifuge to concentrate the platelets to a specific level effective for hair growth. The blood draw is very similar to the amount taken at a routine doctor’s appointment. The platelets are then activated and injected back into the scalp at the level of the hair follicles.
The process stimulates the body’s own growth factors and stem cells to slow hair loss and reverse miniaturised hair to produce a strong, visible hair again. The therapy not only stimulates implanted follicles but also strengthens existing follicles delaying and sometimes reversing the hair loss process. That is why it can either be used in conjunction with other hair transplant procedures to promote faster hair growth and recovery or it can be used individually on the scalp to protect current hair follicles.
Usually the treatment requires about eight sittings; for best results, each should be around two weeks apart. Along with it, one may have to take medications like propercia and minoxidil. The treatment usually takes about one hour and may be performed as a “lunchtime” procedure as there is no recovery or downtime, although some patients do experience a mild sunburn sensation in the treatment areas after the procedure.
The therapy works by magnifying the body’s own natural healing mechanisms, or growth factors, to stimulate hair growth and improve the density and manageability of existing hair, so it will not be beneficial for those who have a complete absence of hair follicles in the affected area. However, the procedure is proving to be very popular for people with thinning hair, and those with androgenetic alopecia (male pattern baldness — hair loss at the top of the scalp and a receding hairline particularly along the temples).
This source first appeared on Bangkok Post Lifestyle.