Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) Treatment
IN LONDON
Mesotherapy injections with PRP growth factors.
More hair, thicker hair, and denser hair.
What is ?
One way to treat alopecia is by awakening the follicle’s stem cells. This helps hair grow, thickens the hair shaft, and increases overall hair density on the scalp. To awaken follicular stem cells, the skin naturally uses what are known as growth factors.
There are many growth factors, but the most natural and reliable source is to use the body’s own growth factors. Blood platelets contain many growth factors. By centrifuging blood, the red blood cells can be separated from the rest and a fraction rich in platelets and, therefore, in growth factors can be obtained. This is known as platelet-rich plasma or PRP.
What does the procedure consist of?
Growth factors are molecules that activate hair follicular stem cells and increase the thickness and number of hairs. Growth factors can be autologous (from oneself) or heterologous (from a laboratory or other source).
PLATELET-RICH PLASMA contains many growth factors that have been used for the repair of tendons, heart tissue, in dentistry, or in trichology for hair stimulation (1).
The mesotherapy procedure consists of injecting active ingredients directly into the scalp. In this way, while the penetration through the skin of these active ingredients applied in lotion is 1%, with infiltration or mesotherapy, it is 100 times higher.
PRP mesotherapy sessions are performed with the assistance of a vibrating device and a fine needle to minimize discomfort, with a frequency ranging from weekly to every few months, depending on the indication.
What is a session like?
1. INITIAL ASSESSMENT
We assess the area to be treated, explain the procedure, and answer any questions you may have.
2. BLOOD DRAWING
We draw the patient’s blood. Typically, three tubes of blood are collected. No precautions are required before the treatment, nor should the patient be performed on an empty stomach.
3. CENTRIFUGATION
We centrifuge the blood to separate the platelets, which are rich in growth factors and will be used to inject them into the scalp, from the red blood cells.
4. SELECTION
We separate the platelet-rich segment of the blood for subsequent injection.
5. DISINFECTION
We disinfect the area to be treated.
6. PLASMA INJECTION
We inject the platelet-rich plasma. We use microneedles and a vibration system to minimize discomfort.
7. RETURN TO ROUTINE
You can return to your normal routine.
Is it painful?
Minimally painful. We use pain-reducing systems.
Does it require sick leave?
No
How long does a session take?
30 minutes
Recovery time
Immediate
How often are the sessions necessary?
The frequency of platelet-rich plasma treatment depends on many factors, and your dermatologist is the best person to establish your treatment plan.
Platelet-rich plasma sessions are performed weekly in cases of severe alopecia, or even quarterly in cases of mild alopecia or as part of a maintenance plan.
When will I see results?
The results of PRP treatment usually begin to appear after 3 months. The reason we have to wait so long is because the hair cycle on the scalp lasts 3 years. Of these three years, the first phase, the anagen phase, occupies approximately 90%. The resting or telogen phase can never exceed 10%, so a 3-month wait to see results should be normal.
Who is a good candidate?
All types of alopecias are suitable candidates for treatments with growth factors, especially if they are autologous, meaning they have an endogenous origin; we produce them ourselves. In almost all types of alopecia, follicular stem cells are arrested in the resting phase and do not generate new follicular cells or hairs.
Perhaps the best indication is male and female androgenetic alopecia, and effluvium, especially telogen effluvium.
There is a substantial difference between telogen and anagen effluvium: the former occurs because follicular cells spend more time resting (telogen period), while in the latter, the hair growth phase, or anagen phase, is shortened. It is more plausible to awaken cells in the resting or telogen phase with growth factors from plasma platelets or PRP, than to prevent them from going to sleep as occurs in anagen effluvium.
Contraindications
It is very difficult to think of a contraindication for carrying out a treatment in which we extract a patient’s platelets, so rich in growth factors, and inject them concentrated and activated into the scalp for the treatment of alopecia. Only those patients who are in a serious condition, with a significant infection or a very delicate state of health, could be a contraindication for this treatment, which would need to be postponed.
Pre- and/or Post-Treatment Advice
Before a PRP session, it’s important to choose the day you’ll receive the treatment. Although in principle, the treatment has few contraindications, meaning it can be done on any day or time, it’s best to choose a day when you’re relaxed and avoid having the treatment on a stressful day, during a surgery, or during your period. We should have the PRP treatment on relatively quiet days, since some blood will be drawn (very little, actually) and microinjections will be performed in the scalp.
After the treatment, it’s important not to wash your hair that same day.
The day after the treatment, you may experience some pain and discomfort. You can take aspirin or an anti-inflammatory. Very rarely, medication is needed the next day, but there will be some discomfort as a result of the microinjections.
Scientific Evidence
Existen 258 artículos indexados donde se estudia el papel del PRP o plasma rico en plaquetas en la alopecia.
Among them, the vast majority conclude that this treatment is highly effective for most types of alopecia or hair loss.
Another conclusion is that, since PRP is obtained from the patient’s own blood and platelets, its safety is so high that the benefit/risk ratio is especially favorable, making it a treatment that should be recommended for practically all patients.
In a very comprehensive study on cellular growth in the hair follicle (Pakhomova EE, Smirnova IO. Comparative Evaluation of the Clinical Efficacy of PRP-Therapy, Minoxidil, and Their Combination with Immunohistochemical Study of the Dynamics of Cell Proliferation in the Treatment of Men with Androgenetic Alopecia. Int J Mol Sci. 2020 Sep 6; 21(18):6516. doi: 10.3390/ijms21186516. PMID: 32899959; PMCID: PMC7555524), it was demonstrated that PRP, or platelet-rich plasma, is superior and more effective than treatment with minoxidil.
It was also observed that combining both treatments produced better results than either of them alone, which is why most specialists in trichology always combine treatments.
A study of 100 men with androgenetic alopecia published in 2021 showed that treatment with 5% minoxidil lotion is significantly inferior to combining the lotion with PRP microinjections or mesotherapy (Ray R, Sharma A. Comparison of 5% minoxidil lotion monotherapy versus its combination with autologous platelet-rich plasma in androgenetic alopecia in 100 males. Med J Armed Forces India. 2021 Jul; 77(3):355-362. doi: 10.1016/j.mjafi.2020.11.010. Epub 2021 Feb 25. PMID: 34305291; PMCID: PMC8282514.). The conclusion of this and other studies is that mesotherapy treatment with PRP should be systematically combined in the treatment of hair loss.
In female andorgenetic alopecia, which affects 40% of women, the efficacy is notable. According to Mercuri et al. (Mercuri SR, Paolino G, Di Nicola MR, Vollono L. Investigating the Safety and Efficacy of Platelet-Rich Plasma (PRP) Treatment for Female Androgenetic Alopecia: Review of the Literature. Medicina (Kaunas). 2021 Mar 25; 57(4):311. doi: 10.3390/medicina57040311. PMID: 33806169; PMCID: PMC8066895), the treatment is effective in most women and should be considered when minoxidil lotions do not work or irritate the scalp or in combination with other treatments as we do in our clinic for the benefit of the patient.
Should we remind your hair how to grow back?
The price of the different procedures for the treatment is:
Frequently asked questions
The most frequently asked questions about Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) can be found here:
Blood tests are not required before a PRP treatment.
Dye or other hair products do not affect Platelet-Rich Plasma treatments, although we generally recommend avoiding any unnecessary treatments 72 hours before and after sessions.
It is recommended to wash your hair at least 12 hours after the treatment.
Yes, you can exercise after a PRP session, although the treated area may be slightly swollen or sore. We recommend avoiding exercise for the first 12 hours.
It is possible to experience a headache after hair PRP sessions, which will disappear in the next few hours or days. If this happens, we recommend taking a common pain reliever.
It is not necessary to perform Platelet Rich Plasma sessions on an empty stomach.