Hair loss, medically known as alopecia, can happen to anyone on any part of their body. However, the most common type of hair loss is hereditary baldness, and it occurs on the scalp. Past treatments for hair loss offered only limited results. However, PRP hair restoration now gives patients a new treatment to restore their thinning hair.
At Simply Radiant in Las Vegas, NV, our state-of-the-art medspa is committed to enhancing and restoring clients’ natural beauty through the latest treatments, including PRP hair restoration. Understanding how this treatment can restore your hair’s growth and what to expect is the first step in determining whether it’s right for you.
What Is PRP?
PRP refers to platelet-rich plasma. Produced by using a centrifuge to separate the parts of your blood, platelet-rich plasma consists of the liquid portion of blood and the platelets, which are instrumental for wound healing.
While platelets are mostly known for clotting wounds, they also contain growth factors that stimulate regenerating tissue and reproducing cells. PRP consists of concentrated platelets in the blood’s plasma.
What Causes Hair Loss?
Your hair grows out of a follicle — a hole on the skin’s surface that aging, changing hormone levels, or genetics can cause to shrink with time. As the hair follicle shrinks, hair becomes shorter and finer before eventually ceasing new growth altogether.
Since the follicles stay alive, the possibility of growing new hair remains. Hair restoration aims to reactivate dormant follicles.
The Basic Steps of PRP Hair Restoration
PRP hair restoration is a three-step process. Most patients undergo three treatments about four to six weeks apart and then complete maintenance treatments every four to six months.
Step One
The first step in your hair restoration is a blood draw. The surface area of your hair loss determines the amount of blood drawn. At most, we draw two ounces for your treatment.
Step Two
Your blood then goes into a centrifuge that rapidly spins to separate the blood by density. In about ten minutes, the centrifuge creates three layers of blood. The top layer contains platelet-poor plasma, the middle layer contains platelet-rich plasma, and the bottom layer holds red and white blood cells.
Step Three
Finally, we inject the blood into precise scalp locations to stimulate hair regrowth. Adding concentrated growth factors to the affected area can promote healing and hair growth, activating dormant follicles.
How Does PRP Promote Hair Restoration?
PRP aims to nourish sluggish or inactive hair follicles, stimulating them to begin producing thicker, less fragile hair. Since PRP contains a mixture of proteins and cytokines called growth factors, it can restore the follicles.
Specifically, PRP growth factors can stimulate fibroblast and collagen production, promote the repair of damaged tissues, and stimulate keratin and fiber development.
PRP Hair Restoration Results
Since PRP intends to stimulate hair growth, results from the treatment take time. After their hair restoration treatment, many patients experience an initial phase of increased hair shedding. However, hair shedding also occurs with topical therapies and oral medication and is a natural part of the restoration process.
Hair shedding occurs due to the increased growth factors healing the follicles. As the hair follicles recover, they create new, healthier, thicker hair that pushes out thin and fragile hair, giving the appearance of shedding.
Your full hair restoration results can take three to six months after your initial treatment. However, many patients see improved hair health in just two weeks. In addition, as your hair follicles repair, you can expect to see an increase in hair growth with a better, thicker texture.
PRP vs. Exosomes for Hair Restoration
PRP and exosomes are regenerative medicine methodologies designed to treat medical conditions at their root cause by harnessing the body’s healing properties. Additionally, PRP and exosomes encourage tissue growth and generation through growth factors.
What Are Exosomes?
Exosomes are tiny particles that foster communication between body cells. They can exchange genetic information with cells in damaged tissue to promote cell regeneration and healing.
Because exosomes used in hair restoration treatments come from stem cells, they contain many growth factors, which are easily carried through the bloodstream and cross barriers cells can’t access.
How Do Exosome and PRP Treatments Differ?
Exosome therapy is a newer treatment for hair restoration that primarily combats thinning hair, targeting existing stem cells. In contrast, PRP therapy triggers tissue repair and regeneration.
While exosome treatments are new enough for their effectiveness to still be under investigation, PRP therapy has been used for years to promote healing and tissue repair. However, exosomes can potentially contain even more growth factors than PRP serums.
PRP and exosome hair restoration work best when combined with other treatments, such as oral prescription medications, over-the-counter vitamins, and topical treatments.
Are You a Candidate for Hair Restoration Treatments?
Men and women with hair loss whose hair follicles are intact are generally good candidates for hair restoration. However, the earlier you begin treatment to address hair loss, the better your results will be.
Those with blood or platelet disorders, who have an active infection or illness, or who take blood thinners or steroids should not undergo PRP hair restoration.
The best way to determine whether you’re a candidate for hair restoration is by visiting our office for a consultation.
Let Us Restore Your Thick, Healthy Hair
At Simply Radiant, we want our patients to look and feel their best. If you’re ready to treat your thinning hair, our expert team would love to discuss the best solutions for you.
Call or schedule an appointment online with our Las Vegas office today to learn how our hair restoration treatments can restore your thick, beautiful hair.