March 01, 2020 | Blog, Medical Spa Info & Tips
10 minute read
Although it is considered by many to be a cosmetic problem, hair loss actually is a medical condition that will afflict more than half of the human population at some point in their lifetime. With the flurry of supposed “miracle” hair loss solutions filling the airwaves and the internet, it can be difficult to separate the medical science from the snake oil. At Capitis Medical & Aesthetics in Roseville, California, we’re here to help you sort through this flood of information and assist you in determining if you are a good candidate for hair restoration.
Are You a Candidate for Hair Restoration?
Because of the wide range of hair loss treatments available today, asking whether or not you are a good candidate is not as simple as it sounds. With treatments ranging from the pharmaceutical to the non-invasive to the surgical, not all options will be suitable for all patients. However, because of the range of choices, it is likely that there is a treatment option that is right for you.
In order to help determine whether or not certain treatments are a good fit, we first must understand a little bit more about why hair loss occurs and the treatments available.
Why Do People Lose Their Hair?
Determining which hair loss treatment is right for you depends a great deal on identifying what is causing your hair loss in the first place. Different treatment options work better for different forms of hair loss, so first it is important to get to the root of why your hair may be losing some of its former thickness.
When people think of hair loss, also known as alopecia, they often think simply of hair thinning or receding due to age. While some hair loss can be chalked up to genetics, it also often has other causes, such as stress, trauma, infections, or autoimmune disease. Sometimes, certain medications or medical treatments also can result in permanent or temporary hair loss.
The large number of potential causes of hair loss is just one reason why it is important to seek the guidance of trained, licensed medical professionals in exploring your hair loss treatment options. Only an experienced healthcare provider will be able to properly identify the root causes of your hair loss in order to recommend the best possible treatment regimen. No “miracle” product purchased over the internet can offer that.
Addressing the Underlying Condition
If it turns out that your hair loss is due to some underlying condition, it may be possible to treat or at least slow your hair loss by addressing that condition directly. Often, this can be done in conjunction with one of the many hair loss treatments available.
Next, let’s turn to some of the amazing hair restoration treatments available today.
Hair Loss Treatments
The medical science behind hair loss has advanced to the point where there are a number of different treatments available that have proven effective in fighting and even reversing the effects of alopecia. The available remedies vary from pharmaceuticals taken orally, to medicated topical creams, to light therapy, to the revolutionary ARAS robotic hair restoration.
With so many treatments available, let’s take a closer look at each so as to better understand your choices and to help you determine which option might be right for you.
Non-Surgical Hair Loss Treatments
Today’s medical hair loss remedies range from the non-invasive to the surgical and everything in between. First, we’ll take a look at some of the non-surgical hair loss treatments available.
Medications (Topical and Oral)
Among the most basic and straightforward hair loss treatments are pharmaceuticals, some of which have had a remarkable track record of success in stemming and even reversing the course of hair loss. Made famous under the brand names Propecia and Rogaine, the drugs finasteride (Propecia) and minoxidil (Rogaine) have achieved noticeable results for many patients. And, with new and improved formulations of these drugs now available, they are even easier to use and have fewer side effects than ever.
Among these newer formulations is a topical form of finasteride and an oral form of minoxidil. These drugs, along with the medication spironolactone, are commonly used to address hair loss in both men and women.
Herbal Remedies
Certain herbal remedies have been shown to be effective in addressing some of the underlying biological causes of hair loss. For example, the herbal supplement Nutrafol may help limit the impact that stress and nutrient deficiencies have on hair loss.
Injections
Slightly more intrusive than medications or herbal remedies, there are now a wide range of hair loss treatment options that are delivered via injection. These treatments harness some of the most revolutionary technologies available to modern medical science, including platelet-rich plasma (PRP) and stem cells.
These injection-based treatments typically take less than an hour to perform in an outpatient medical setting and usually require little or no downtime afterward. Some of the more potent treatments, especially those utilizing cutting-edge Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes, may require only a single treatment, while others may require multiple treatments over time to achieve maximum effect.
How Do Injections for Hair Loss Work?
One thing all these injection-based hair loss treatments have in common is that they do not actually grow “new” hair. Instead, their different formulations are aimed at stimulating and “waking up” existing but dormant miniaturized hair or vellus hair, transforming them into thick, healthy terminal hairs.
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)
While you might have heard of top athletes receiving platelet-rich plasma (PRP) injections to help speed recovery from an injury or to help keep aging athletes at the top of their game, this revolutionary treatment is now available to address a growing number of conditions, including hair loss.
How Do PRP Injections Work?
One of the benefits of PRP injections is that they utilize only the platelets and growth factors contained in your own blood. In a treatment that typically requires only about an hour from start to finish, a small amount of your own blood is extracted before being placed in a high-tech centrifuge that spins the blood at incredibly high speeds.
In the centrifuge, the blood separates into its component parts, with platelets forming in their own band within the tube. These platelets are then separated and placed into a syringe, from which they are strategically re-injected back into the target area. PRP injections deliver high concentrations of platelets and growth factors to the target area, promoting the body’s own natural processes to kick-start the growth of dormant hair.
Stem Cells
Like PRP injections, stem cells represent another revolutionary area of modern medicine the potential of which researchers and practitioners are only now beginning to tap. One area in which stem cells and exosomes are growing in popularity is in the treatment of hair loss.
What Are Stem Cells?
Stem cells are a type of cell that possesses amazing abilities that other cells do not. Chief among these unique capabilities is the ability of stem cells to produce “daughter” cells of any cell type found in the human body. For example, whereas a standard cardiac cell can only produce additional cardiac cells and liver cells can only produce other liver cells, a stem cell could replicate to produce cardiac cells or liver cells, or any other cell type found in humans.
Needless to say, this remarkable capability gives stem cells amazing potential in a wide range of medical applications, including hair loss treatments. Through strategically targeted stem cell injections, one can stimulate dormant hairs, just as stem cells are used to stimulate tissue regeneration in other applications.
Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes
At Capitis Medical & Aesthetics, we are proud to offer the latest in cutting-edge stem cell technology, Mesenchymal Stem Cell Exosomes. The newest and most potent of the stem cell treatments we offer for hair loss, research suggests that this treatment might be so powerful so as to require only a single treatment session.
Low-Level Light Therapy
Another high-tech hair loss treatment is known as Low-Level Light Therapy. Part of the expanding field of photobiomodulation, LLLT uses a low-energy-intensity, near-infrared beam of light to stimulate hair follicles, promoting an increase in their metabolism and causing them to grow at an increased rate.
The efficacy of Low-Level Light Therapy is supported by a growing body of scientific evidence, and a number of different products offering LLLT are available on the market today. One important key to LLLT is to use the treatment enough, but not too much. Overuse can result in overstimulation, which renders hair follicles too fatigued to grow optimally, thereby achieving the opposite of the intended effect.
Hair Transplantation Surgery
On the more invasive side of hair loss treatments is hair transplantation surgery. Having advanced a great deal in recent decades, hair transplantation surgery may be the right treatment option for you.
As the name suggests, hair transplantation surgery involves transplanting hair from one area of the body to another, usually the scalp. Presently, two methods of surgical hair transplantation are most common.
Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT)
One common type of hair transplantation surgery is known as Follicular Unit Transplant (FUT). FUT involves what is known as the “strip” method, which literally involves cutting a strip of skin with hair on it from one area of the body and surgically implanting that strip of skin in the scalp.
Follicular Unit Excision (FUE)
As opposed to FUT, Follicular Unit Excision (FUE) does not involve moving an entire strip of hair-containing skin, but rather carefully transplanting hair follicles one at a time.
Because both of these hair transplantation procedures rely a great deal on the skill of the medical professional(s) performing the procedure, results can vary widely. And beware! Because hair transplantation is by definition a surgical procedure, it must be performed by a licensed medical professional such as a physician, nurse practitioner, or physician’s assistant. It is illegal (and highly unsafe for patients) for any unlicensed individual to perform hair transplantation procedures.
ARTAS Robotic Hair Restoration
Among the most cutting-edge hair loss treatments available today, the ARTAS System harnesses ground-breaking robotics with revolutionary artificial intelligence (AI) to deliver the latest in natural-looking results. ARTAS AI selects the healthiest follicles from the donor area, and the precision robotics transplant them with minimal invasiveness, avoiding the highly visible linear scar associated with many more traditional hair transplantation procedures.
Talk to the Experts
We hope that his guide to hair restoration has helped you in determining whether or not you are a good candidate for hair loss treatment and, if so, which potential treatment may be best for you. However, to truly know whether or not you are a good candidate, there really is no substitute for a one-on-one consultation with an experienced, licensed professional.
Contact Capitis Medical & Aesthetics in Roseville, California today to get started on your personal path to hair restoration!