Patient Confidentiality Notice: Please note that all patient names have been changed to protect the patient’s identity. All information concerning patients and former patients of Medi Tresse is confidential. No information is released without the patient’s authorization.
Location: Worcester, MA
Sex: Female
Age: 51
Hair Loss Started: 49
Hair Loss Prior to Treatment: Gradually all over the scalp
Treatments Tried Before: Specialized Shampoos and minoxidil
Diagnosis: Androgenic Alopecia
Treatment Plan: Painless PRP therapy, Low Level Laser Therapy, Supplements
Nancy was a new patient to the Medi Tresse Worcester, MA office in July 2022. Over the past couple of years, she began to notice her hair was shedding more than in the past and saw a dermatologist that diagnosed her with telogen effluvium and recommended over the counter minoxidil. Unfortunately, her hair loss continued to progress and this impacted how Nancy felt about herself. Nancy was hoping to find a treatment that would regrow some of what she lost and provide more coverage on her scalp.
Prior to her initial consultation with Medi Tresse, Nancy had tried over the counter minoxidil, as recommended by her dermatologist, and some specialized shampoos. It is important to note that if a patient is truly in a telogen effluvium shed, that minoxidil would not be recommended as it can cause worse shedding. After meeting with the hair loss specialist at the Medi Tresse Worcester, MA office, Nancy was provided a new diagnosis of Androgenic Alopecia.
Androgenic Alopecia, which is also known as female pattern hair loss (FPHL), is the most common cause of hair thinning and hair loss in women. Around 70% of the patients at Medi Tresse are diagnosed with Androgenic Alopecia. With this type of hair loss, there is a shortening of the growth phase of the hair, which causes the hair to miniaturize over time. If not treated, the affected hair will continue to get smaller and can disappear completely. The good news is that there are lots of great treatment options to reverse this miniaturization and regrow thicker healthier hair.
With all of our treatments, we have three main goals: stop further loss, make the hair you have thicker, healthier, and if possible regrow hair. We like to remind all of our patients that attaining any of these goals is a success.
Studies have shown that the combination of Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy and low-level laser therapy is the strongest option for female pattern hair loss. After discussing her goals with the Medi Tresse team, Nancy decided to choose Painless PRP therapy and a laser cap device. Nancy also utilized the Tresse Revitalizer and Tresse Fortifier hair loss supplements, which are important to make sure the treated hairs are receiving key nutrients and vitamins for healthy hair growth.
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) Therapy has been utilized for over a decade in the treatment of female hair loss. The treatment uses the patient’s own blood, which is spun down in a centrifuge where the highly concentrated PRP mixture is split off. The PRP has high concentrations of platelets and growth factors and when injected into the scalp it has been shown to heal the follicle at a cellular level, leading to thicker hair and reactivating dormant follicles to regrow hair.
The Painless PRP Therapy is a novel approach to traditional PRP, which doesn’t require needles to inject the PRP. Instead, at Medi Tresse we have a specialized machine that utilizes high pressurized air to infuse the PRP into the scalp without the use of needles. This means the patient does not need to be numbed before the treatment and there are no injections, making it completely painless for the patient. At Medi Tresse we also use a platelet counter during the treatment, which allows the team to determine the baseline platelet count of the patient at the time of their treatment. By knowing the patient’s base platelet count, our expert staff is able to customize the treatment for each patient to better obtain the optimal platelet concentration that studies have shown to be most effective in the treatment of hair loss with PRP.
Painless PRP Therapy is available at the following Medi Tresse locations: Boston, Worcester, Westchester, New York City, and Chattanooga.
Low-Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) has been used for the treatment of female hair loss for over 20 years. At Medi Tresse we recommend an industry leading laser cap device that provides the optimal energy and output that research has shown is needed for hair loss and that many other devices do not offer. LLLT has been shown to prolong the growth phase of the hair follicle and increase blood flow to the hair follicle, which has been shown to reverse miniaturization and lead to thicker healthier hair. The lights used in LLLT are cold-beam lasers. These forms of light are not capable of burning skin, which makes prolonged use safe for patients.
The hair follicle is a very complex structure, and the health of the hair can be affected by numerous changes in the body. In order to provide the patient with the best chance of success and the most benefit possible, it is important to heal the follicle at numerous levels. While both Painless PRP Therapy and LLLT have been shown to be effective on their own in the treatment of female pattern hair loss, these two treatment modalities work in different ways to heal the follicle which provides the patient the best chance of success and a stronger result.
The before and growing photos below are seven months apart. Nancy is happy with the current results and is excited to continue her treatment plan with the Medi Tresse team, which is a laser cap, Painless PRP boosters every 6 months, and hair loss supplements to continue her journey of hair regrowth.
All case studies are from real patients at Medi Tresse affiliated practices, and may not reflect the typical patient’s experience, and are not intended to represent or guarantee that anyone will achieve the same or similar results. Individual results may vary. However, these results are meant as a showcase of what these patients have achieved. Not all patients can achieve the results depicted here and it is important to speak with your Medi Tresse practitioner about your individual case and the best treatment plan for you.
