There is science. There is science fiction. And then there’s PRP for hair loss. As anyone who has explored the technology of Platelet-Rich Plasma can attest, it’s pretty unusual. But scientific studies have shown promise for it as a treatment for hair loss.
However, it is also a very recent development in the search for suitable treatments for people with thinning hair, and it is not available everywhere. Indeed, it is available at only a very few clinics in the Bay Area. However, Dr. Miguel Canales is a world authority on the restoration of thinning hair, and he is prescribing it for some patients at his clinic in Foster City, Silicon Valley Hair Institute.
So what, exactly, is PRP for hair loss?
In the blood circulating in our bodies we have things called platelets. They are the part of the blood which commences the process of coagulation when you have a cut or wound. Anyone who has had a minor cut, which is most of us at some time or another, will know that it stops bleeding fairly quickly, and that is because of the way that the platelets work. Pop a plaster on top, and you’re fine.
Now it has been found that platelets can boost the growth of miniaturized hairs to help them become thick terminal hairs.
The way that it works is that Dr. Canales will take a sample of your blood which is then spun in a centrifuge. What this does is separate the solid parts of the blood – the platelets – from the liquid part. To this solid part Dr. Canales will add platelet activators – calcium chloride, thrombin, and sometimes collagen – and this is then placed into a syringe and Dr Canales injects it into the areas of thinning hair.
Several Treatments Will Be Needed
The process takes about an hour, and several treatments will be needed. You can expect to see some improvement in reversing the miniaturization anywhere between 2 – 6 months. A follow-up appointment is needed four weeks after the first treatment and again after eight weeks. After that, the intervals will depend upon your response to the treatment, but one would usually expect them to be every three months.
Dr. Canales will take photographs of your scalp in order to monitor the reaction.
As we explained, PRP for hair loss is not widely available at the moment, but if you think that this might be a suitable treatment for your condition, Dr Canales is happy to offer you a completely free consultation when he can assess the condition of your scalp and whether you are a suitable candidate, and, of course, answer all your questions.
If you are suitable for PRP, Dr. Canales can carry out the first treatment straight away.