Can PRP treat hair loss?

 Doctors use a treatment called platelet-rich plasma (PRP) to speed up healing in different parts of the body. It might aid in the growth of new hair.

This treatment is typically used by doctors when androgenetic alopecia, a common condition in which hair follicles shrink, causes hair loss. This is known as male pattern baldness in men.

Despite the fact that PRP is a relatively new treatment, there is some scientific evidence that it can encourage hair growth.

What is PRP?

PRP may be suggested by a doctor to treat androgenetic alopecia.

It is essential to be aware of the role that platelets play in healing in order to comprehend how PRP works.

Along with red and white blood cells, platelets are a component of blood. Platelets are one of the body's "first responders" that arrive at a cut or wound to stop the bleeding and aid in healing.

If concentrated platelets could be injected into damaged areas of the body, researchers hypothesized, healing could be accelerated.

Best PRP in Islamabad A blood sample will be taken by a medical professional and placed in a centrifuge to make PRP. The blood's components are separated as this machine spins rapidly. The platelets are then taken out by the doctor and injected.

PRP has a variety of proteins and growth factors that accelerate tissue repair. Researchers initially hypothesized that PRP could help regrow hair by reversing the process that occurs in androgenetic alopecia, as some forms of hair loss are caused by damage to hair follicles.

Since then, PRP has grown in popularity as a way to get hair back to growing. PRP has also been used by doctors to treat tendons, muscles, and ligament injuries, like those people get from playing sports.

Is it working?

A group of researchers conducted a systematic review of the research on PRP as a hair loss treatment in 2019. Aesthetic Plastic Surgery is the journal where their findings are published.

In the end, the analysis focused on 11 research papers with 262 participants who had androgenetic alopecia. The majority of studies, according to the authors, demonstrated that PRP injections decreased hair loss and increased hair diameter and density.

However, they acknowledged that the treatment is contentious and pointed out that their investigation was constrained by inadequate research and small sample sizes.

In a separate systematic review published in Dermatologic SurgeryTrusted Source in 2019, 19 studies on PRP as a treatment for hair loss were examined. In total, 460 people were recruited for these studies. The review's authors say that most studies showed that PRP treatments helped people with androgenetic alopecia and alopecia areata grow new hair.

Based on their findings, the authors of an additional review studies that was published in the International Journal of Women's DermatologyTrusted Source thought that PRP was a "promising" treatment for hair loss.

However, the team pointed out that PRP's effects can vary because different clinics and researchers use different preparations, session intervals, and injection techniques.

Procedure:

An illustration of a typical procedure for PRP injections to treat hair loss is as follows:

A doctor or nurse draws blood from an arm vein.

The blood sample is placed in a centrifuge.

The blood is separated into its components as the centrifuge spins it.

Using a syringe, the platelets are extracted by a medical professional.

The platelets are injected into specific areas of the scalp by a doctor.

The entire procedure may require multiple sessions and may take approximately one hour. A person usually has no trouble returning to their usual activities after receiving PRP treatment.

How long is it effective?

Hair loss conditions cannot be treated with PRP. To maintain hair growth results, a person would need to have multiple PRP treatments over time. The same is true for medications used by doctors to treat androgenetic alopecia, such as oral finasteride (Propecia) and topical minoxidil (Regaine).

The duration of a patient's PRP treatment will be determined by the patient's condition and the outcomes of their initial treatment. Once hair loss is under control, the doctor may recommend maintenance injections every 3–6 monthsTrusted Source.