Is stem cell therapy for hair loss effective or not? (photo)

There is no stem cell therapy for hair loss. If the term is used, it is a misnomer or a publicity stunt / advertising gimmick.

A big percentage of hair loss, about 95%, is either male
pattern or female pattern hair loss. 30% of women under the age of 50 have
female pattern hair loss while 50% of women over the age of 50 experience it.
Female pattern hair loss is an area that is really not paid that much attention
to maybe because of the limited solutions available for this problem.



One of the things I would do for a person in your situation,
if it hasn't been done already, is several biopsy points of your scalp. We then
send the sample to our much respected university pathology department who is
familiar with hair to be sure that we have a correct diagnosis. Once the
diagnosis has been confirmed, then we would then proceed to options for
treatment. The most common diagnosis in hair loss is androgenetic alopecia
which is manifested with patients having thick hair progressing to thinner hair.



Our practice has developed a method of hair loss treatment
called Hair Regeneration which we use for male and female pattern hair loss, as
well as more complex situations like androgenic alopecia, alopecia areata,
systemic lupus erythematosus and other immune diagnosis. Hair Regeneration treatment is composed of
extracellular matrix designed originally for wound healing, which is derived
from pig bladder, combined with platelet-rich plasma taken from the patient’s
blood. When used in male pattern hair loss, there is about 99.9% success rate.
In female pattern hair loss, there’s around 70%-80% success rate ,while in
alopecia areata and lupus it helps about 50% of patients. Unfortunately, there are certain conditions that
cannot be treated with this stem cell-based therapy which includes the scarring
type of alopecia and conditions like lichen planopilaris.



The term stem cell therapy has been overused and abused. A lot
of people who offer this are basically offering a questionable treatment for
very desperate people. It’s very important that you do your research and understand
what it means to have stem cell therapy. There are stem cells derived from
plants that are being injected and other people are deriving stem cells after
doing liposuction. There is some legitimacy to that - there was a study where
placing fat under the scalp derived from liposuction actually helped hair
growth. I think it has to do with some relation to the stem cells and growth factors
that initiate hair growth, but that’s a discussion outside the scope of this
question.



I suggest that you get a right diagnosis then consider proper
treatment. Hair Regeneration is something that you can learn about and then decide
if this is something worth pursuing. Find a provider that can offer you that in
an area that may be convenient for you. I hope that was helpful, I wish you the
best of luck, and thank you for question.

There is no such thing as stem cell therapy to stop or correct hair loss of any kind.  I would question any doctor who is currently recommending that today.Dr John E Frank, MDNew York City