Hair
loss, no matter how mild it is, can mess up your facial beauty. If you are
suffering from hair loss, you need to understand that this is a common
condition that affects 60% of males and 50% of women worldwide. Hair loss
interferes a lot with how you may want to style your hair. Since hair loss
comes in different forms from different causes, not all hair loss treatments
are suitable for everyone. Before considering getting any kind of hair
restoration procedure, you first need to consult your physician. He or she will
tell you the exact cause of your hair loss and the suitable treatment.
Modern
medical hair loss treatments come in different techniques. Some offer permanent
solutions to hair loss, while others are just temporary. Among the latest hair
loss treatments are PRP for hair loss, the FUE hair transplant Los Angeles procedure,
micro scalp pigmentation, and medication.
In this
post, we shall explore and explain the PRP hair loss treatment to see what it
offers, what makes it quite effective, and who is eligible for this type of
hair restoration therapy. If you need to study more about this type of
treatment, read along for more insights.
What Does PRP Stand For?
PRP is
short for platelet-rich plasma, which is a treatment that utilizes high
concentrations of platelets to treat not just hair loss but also faces wrinkles
and sports-related injuries that have affected muscles, ligaments, and tendons.
Platelets are very tiny cells produced in the bone marrow, responsible for cell
regeneration and blood clotting to stop bleeding when tissue is damaged.
When
treating hair loss, platelet-rich plasma is extracted from the patient's blood,
and then it's injected into the areas of the scalp experiencing balding to
stimulate hair growth. The theory behind this type of hair restoration therapy
is that the PRP solution increases blood supply containing nutrients that
strengthen the hair follicles. Another theory suggests that platelet-rich
plasma contains growth factors and proteins responsible for cell regeneration
and repair.
PRP
hair treatment can also be enhanced by combining it with other advanced
treatments such as FUE – follicular unit extraction hair transplant procedure.
Once the doctor is done with the hair transplant procedure, PRP is injected in
both the recipient and the donor areas to speed up healing and hair
growth.
Steps Involved in The PRP Hair Treatment Therapy
There
are three main steps associated in the PRP hair restoration procedure. The
majority of the patients who undergo the PRP follow these steps within 4 to 6
weeks. Once this time is over, the patient will be going through maintenance
treatments in about six to one-year intervals. Let's now look at these three
steps.
1. Drawing of the Patient's Blood
The first step in the PRP hair treatment therapy is removing or drawing the
patient's blood. The doctor only requires a small sample of the blood that will
be used to extract PRP. Once the blood is extracted, it is placed inside a
centrifuge machine, which spins it rapidly to separate the different components
of blood from that sample. This process divides blood components based on
density.
2. Division of Blood into Three Different Layers
Once
the centrifuge machine spins the blood for about 10 minutes, the blood sample
will divide itself into three components. These three components include the
red blood cells, platelet-rich plasma, and plasma with little platelets. Since
what is needed in this procedure is platelet-rich plasma, the doctor will
extract it using a syringe.
3. Injecting the PRP Solution Into the Thinning or Balding Areas
The third and last step is to inject the PRP solution into the areas of the scalp
suffering from thinning hair or balding. This is done to promote healing and
stimulate dormant hair follicles to grow.
Risks and Side Effects of PRP Hair Treatment
Since
only the patient's blood is used to extract the platelet-rich plasma, there are
major risks of blood infections. Provided you have sought the best PRP hair
treatment from the best hair restoration clinic or doctor, the risk of
infections from medical instruments such as the syringe will be reduced. Like
any other therapy that uses injections to administer treatment, risks will
always occur in PRP hair treatment therapy. Here are some of them:
- Infection
- Scar tissue
- Calcification at
the injection points
- Blood vessel and
nerve injuries
Conclusion
PRP has
proved to be an effective hair loss treatment that offers a semi-permanent
solution. If the doctor examines your scalp and rules out the FUE hair
transplant Los Angeles procedure as a hair treatment, the best option would be
the PRP hair treatment procedure.
Unfortunately, since this type of treatment is seen as a cosmetic procedure,
health insurance doesn't have a policy covering it, meaning that the patient
will have to pay for the treatment.
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