Hair Restoration Blog

I just read a new article presenting an interesting case presentation and thought it might be useful for the readers of our hair restoration blog.  The article is published in the Journal of American Academy of Dermatology this month (July 2009).

It goes over mesotherapy, a remedy that has been proposed for hair loss and its adverse side effects.  Mesotherapy has recently become an advertised method for the treatment of different types of alopecia despite the lack of any data regarding its efficacy and possible side effects. The substances injected into the scalp include “cocktails” of natural plant extracts, homeopathic agents, vitamins, vasodilators, and drugs that may stimulate hair growth such as finasteride and minoxidil.

The authors report two cases of patchy alopecia that developed after mesotherapy for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia. In the first patient, alopecia developed after injections of the heparinoid vasodilator mesoglycan; the 3-month follow-up examination revealed a small residual area of cicatricial alopecia. The second patient developed reversible alopecia after multiple scalp injections of homeopathic agents. These cases underline the possible risks of mesotherapy as a therapeutic technique for hair loss.

This could be considered another modality that was presented for male hair loss without a solid value like many other similar hair loss products.  We have always said in this blog that the hair loss product market is a “buyer beware” market and you need to do your research and, preferably, discuss with your doctor before you try any new modality for treatment of your hair loss.

I just found this article on transplantation of artificial hair.  Artificial or synthetic hair for the treatment of male pattern baldness or androgenetic alopecia has been tried in many countries, but has been unsuccessful at getting FDA approval in America for a variety of problems that it had.  The result of the study published in Journal of Cosmetic Dermatology is very limited in terms of the number of participants and transplanted hair but it is worthy of mentioning in our hair restoration blog.

The article discusses the problems of the artificial hair implantation such as poor quality fiber, untrained operators, and inadequate techniques.  However, the paper aims to establish safety and efficacy of a new artificial copolyamide fiber implantation in male patterned baldness or androgenetic alopecia.

In the study, ten healthy adults with androgenetic alopecia who had failed prior conventional therapies such as medical or surgical hair restoration were implanted with copolyamide fiber and were followed for a minimum of 3 years. Implantation consisted of 100 test fibers followed by subsequent sessions of up to 500 fibers every 4-6 weeks to achieve a density of 20-40 fibers per cm(2).

The techniques of implantation and follow-ups maintained a strict adherence to schedule.  In this study 10,000 fibers were implanted with a mean of 1000 fibers per patient. With the exception of one patient, implantation was found to be safe, aesthetically pleasing, and psychologically rewarding to its recipients. Sebum deposition and temporary pitting at entry point of most fibers were universal. Recurrent mild folliculitis occurred in 30% of patients.

The other complications such as facial swelling, cellulitis, and severe scarring were not seen in this study. Between 15-20% of all transplanted fibers fell every year and maintenance of the procedure was shown to be necessary.  In conclusion, the choice of fiber implantation technique and mandatory follow-up were deemed to be some of the important contributory factors towards positive results.  Hair restoration with artificial hair might become more popular in the future for patients who lack good quality donor hair with extensive baldness.  However, other studies on a larger number of patients need to be done before it can really prove to be safe for practical use.

Q:
Well I am only 18 yrs old from India and I have got a hair problem. usually when I was young I didn’t care much about my hair, but now I have  found that I have  lost my hair and they r falling very rapidly.

Well my diet is also not too good as I am very lean…..now I am getting very worried about my .They have not completely gone…. but volume or (say) quantity of hair has reduced very much from all over the head and the effect can be seen more on the crown area I don’t use much shampoo and usually I didn’t use to use oil but have started now.

My father is too bald so please help me that what should I do …so that I can restore my hair back……

A:
Your hair loss is most likely genetic and you might be experiencing the early stages of male pattern baldness.  Although malnutrition may cause some types of hair loss, it won’t happen until your are severely deficient of some particular elements.

Having said that, it is a good idea to see your doctor to confirm the diagnosis of the hair loss, especially if your hair loss does not follow a typical male pattern like what you can probably see in other male members of your family.  Men hair loss in its male pattern type is seen in men between their early 20s and will deteriorate for many years.  There are many hair loss products out in the market, but none of those are really proven to work except a few medications that are FDA approved such as minoxidil and finasteride.

My recommendation is not to start using hair loss medications before your diagnosis of male patterned baldness is confirmed by a doctor.  Hair transplant might be an option for you in the future so it is good to start your relationship with a hair transplant surgeon now.