Thank you for your question. You’re asking about the application of platelet-rich plasma (PRP) for hair loss, and you’ve heard about people who go for more than one treatment — even 4th, 5th or 6th treatments. You’re also wondering what happens when the first round of treatments don’t work.I can certainly help you with this. I’m a Board-certified cosmetic surgeon and Fellowship-trained oculofacial plastic and reconstructive surgeon, practicing in Manhattan and Long Island for over 20 years. I have performed hair transplants and hair management procedures for that long as well. I’m also the founder of Trichostem™ Hair Regeneration centers, which offers a non-surgical alternative treatment using PRP for hair loss and hair thinning in both men and women.PRP is a concentration of the wound-healing and growth factors in your blood, which help stimulate collagen and blood supply. In my practice as a cosmetic surgeon, I use PRP for a lot of different indications due to its tremendous benefit: dark under eye circles, acne scars, scar revision, fine lines and wrinkles, and so on.In terms of treating hair loss, it has been my observation that PRP can cause short-term bursts of hair growth in some patients. Many of my colleagues have developed hair loss treatment systems based on this, so it is not unusual for a doctor to have patient have a series of treatments in order to determine how well PRP works for them.Patients who come to me after having this type of monthly treatment usually stop after four months because there is either an inconsistency with how the anesthetic is being administered, they feel the discomfort of the injection, or they are unsure if they can keep up with this type of continuous maintenance needed.In our practice, we’ve developed our own non-surgical treatment system and protocol called Hair Regeneration using platelet-rich plasma and extracellular matrix. Hair Regeneration is able to stop the thinning process, reactivate the growth cycle of existing hairs, and thicken existing thinning hairs. With a single injection, we’ve been able to sustain these benefits for years. In some patients, we will do a second injection after the first year, but only because I’ve learned in my research that there is value in strengthening the existing hairs that we’ve been able to rejuvenate through this treatment. Our patients are often male and female patients with androgenetic alopecia, or pattern hair loss, which is the most common cause of hair loss.From my perspective alone, and not to disparage any other physicians who use PRP for hair loss, I think that PRP alone is not as effective as our treatment combination of PRP and extracellular matrix.I suggest that you meet with experienced and qualified hair loss specialists and discuss what you can realistically expect from PRP. Many of my colleagues swear by the effectivity of PRP for hair loss and it is not my place to say whether they are right or wrong. I can only tell you what my observations of the material are based on my own extensive experience with it. As a side note, I’ve had patients come to me from all over the world — from India and even China — just to get this one injection. So you can imagine that this treatment had better work.Ultimately, PRP is hugely beneficial in the many modalities that we use it in, but when it comes to hair loss, Hair Regeneration is what we’ve found to be the most effective way to utilize the benefits of PRP in a consistent and sustainable manner.I hope that was helpful and I wish you the best of luck!
