Hair Loss Treatments
Dr.Sam and the team behind NuaCell have provided a bespoke and gold-standard hair loss and hair restoration clinic called HRI (the Hair Restoration Institute) for many years in the clinic in Malahide. These services continue, under the exact same team in the same clinic, but now operate under the new clinical umbrella of NuaCell!
Understanding Hair Loss
Why are you losing your hair?
There are a number of reasons why you might be experiencing hair loss, and the factors influencing this loss can differ from person to person.
Male/Female Genetic Pattern Baldness
Also known as Androgenic Alopecia, this is the most common form of hair loss among men and women. This condition occurs in up to 50% of the population, and is caused by genetic factors. A hormone called DHT, or Dihydrotestosterone, attacks receptors on hair follicles on the scalp. This causes the small blood vessels supplying these follicles to shut down, eliminating the oxygen and nutrient supply to the hair follicle. The hair gradually shrinks until the follicle can no longer produce a hair, and enters into a resting, or dormant, state (It is important to note here that in most cases the hair follicle is not dead, simply dormant). This is traditional genetic pattern hair loss.
In women, this generally results in a diffuse loss and thinning of the hair, and in men, the hair loss generally follows a pattern of receding in the hairline, thinning and balding in the vertex, and in many cases total loss of the hair on the top of the scalp. The hair on the back and sides of the head does not contain the receptors for DHT, and so generally will not be lost in the same manner as the hair on top of the head.
Alopecia
Alopecia is in fact the term for ‘hair loss’, however there are many forms of alopecia, such as Areata, where certain patches of hair are lost, Totalis, where all of the hair on the head is lost, or Universalis, where a person experiences complete loss of all the hair on the body, including eyebrows, facial hair and pubic hair.
The causes of many of these forms of alopecia are still not fully understood, and they can cause the hair to fall out in a variety of different ways, however it is thought that stress, immune system issues and certain illnesses and diseases can trigger or contribute to these forms of hair loss.
Injury/illness
There are some acute and traumatic causes for hair loss, where the scalp or hair follicle is physically damaged as a result of illness or injury.
If you experience a burn or a cut to the scalp, for example, it is possible to damage and destroy hair follicles, and eliminate the possibility of a hair growing in that area again. Similarly, if you experience scarring of an area, again resulting from an injury, or a specific condition like frontal fibrosing alopecia (a common complaint affecting the hairline in females specifically) this can negatively affect the blood supply to the follicles in the area. There are ways of stimulating the growth of new tissue in these areas, however these cases can offer more unique challenges.
Treating Hair Loss
Managing hair loss effectively involves much more than simply having a procedure. When it comes to creating an effective plan to achieve proper results, there are 3 parts to every journey:
PREVENTION: Preventing further hair loss from developing should be the first consideration for every case, regardless of the severity of the loss.
STIMULATION: It’s possible in many cases to stimulate the hair follicles to grow again through the use of regenerative and adjunctive therapies.
INTERVENTION: Surgical intervention, such as FUE hair transplants, and non-surgical intervention, such as scalp micro pigmentation, can be effectively used to manage hair loss, but are always the last piece of the overall puzzle to consider.
The Treatments
The treatments for hair loss available at NuaCell represent years of research and successful management of hundreds of clients using a regenerative and preventative approach, combined with surgical management of a wide range of hair loss concerns, for both men and women.
Most treatment plans developed for clients at NuaCell will include a combination of several treatments, designed on an individual basis during a comprehensive consultation, to give you the best chance at achieving optimal results.
Carboxytherapy
Carbon Dioxide (CO2) gas is used to stimulate a healing effect in the target tissue, leading to growth and repair of cells
Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP)
The plasma part of your own blood, which contains high concentrations of growth factors and healing cells, is extracted and injected directly into the scalp, stimulating the growth and repair of the hair follicles and surrounding blood vessels.
Platelet Rich Fibrin (PRF)
Similar to PRP, PRF is prepared slightly differently to include the fibrin part of your blood, as well as a higher concentration of leukotrienes, which is important in the early stages of growth and repair of tissue, in this case hair follicles.
Growth Factor Therapy
Specially prepared growth factors, containing copper peptides to support a longer active growing phase of the hair, are used to stimulate and promote growth of hair, and can be particularly effective at activating the growth of dormant hair follicles.
Hair Transplant - Follicle Unit Excision (FUE)
This is a surgical hair transplant procedure, where hair follicles are extracted one by one, leaving no linear scar, usually from the back of the head or the body, (where the follicles do not have the gene for hair loss). These follicles are then transplanted individually into the treatment area, where they grow as normal hair.
Eyebrow Transplant - Follicle Unit Excision (FUE)
Using the FUE technique, individual hair follicles are selected, matching the type and properties of the eyebrow hairs, and these are transplanted one by one into the treatment area in the brow, to create a natural appearance.
Scalp Micro Pigmentation (SMP)
This is a non-surgical option which is used to create the ‘illusion’ of hair, by placing small dots of pigment into the scalp which can replicate the appearance of a hair follicle. The type of procedure performed at NuaCell is called Tricopigmentation, and this is a semi-permanent procedure, meaning it will fade over time. Tricopigmentation is best suited to creating the effect of a tightly cropped or shaved head of hair.
Finasteride
Finasteride is a medication known as an alpha-5-reductase inhibitor. This means that it helps to prevent the DHT molecule from attacking the hair follicle and starting the miniaturization and balding process. This is one of the most effective ways of stopping hair loss, and Finasteride is effective at preventing loss in up to 70% of the hair on the head.
There are often concerns over potential side effects surrounding Finsateride, so it is vital to consult with your hair restoration physician before starting this or any new medication.
Dutasteride
Dutasteride is a newer progression of the Finasteride medication. Dutasteride is also a 5 alpha reductase inhibitor, however the difference lies in the fact that Dutasteride can prevent loss in up to 100% of the hair as it also works to protect the type 1 receptors with the type 2 receptors, while Finsteride is effective for type 2 only.
There are often concerns over potential side effects surrounding Dutasteride, so it is vital to consult with your hair restoration physician before starting this or any new medication.
FUE Hair Transplants
FUE or Follicle Unit Excision hair transplants are the modern Gold Standard for surgical hair loss treatments. The number of follicles required for an individual will depend on the severity and pattern of the hair loss, and this is always determined in a comprehensive consultation process with the hair restoration surgeon. Hair transplants are extremely successful procedures when performed correctly by trained and experienced professionals.
For optimum results, these procedures can be combined with a number of adjunctive therapies to enhance and improve the outcome.
Watch the videos below to learn more about these procedures.
What is a Hair Transplant?
FUE vs FUT – What’s the Difference?
How to Get Started
Hair loss can be a difficult subject to tackle. There are usually significant emotional factors attached to losing your hair, which is absolutely normal, but this can make it very hard to take the first step towards managing it.
On top of this, there is so much information available online, and much of that is actually very misleading, so it’s hard to decide what options are available to you, and what actually works.
The best way to gain a full understanding of hair loss, all of the factors that influence it, and an in-depth explanation of the evidence-based treatments that actually work, is to book a consultation with a hair restoration specialist.
There are 2 initial options for clients who are new to this process at NuaCell:
Free Technician Consultation - What's Involved?
If you decide to meet with a technician, this will essentially involve a general discussion on the many topics surrounding hair loss, it’s causes, and the treatments available to manage the conditions.
This is an information session, and the technician will not be able to provide a diagnosis for a client, a treatment plan, or a specific cost for treatment.You will have the opportunity to ask any questions you may have regarding the procedures performed at NuaCell, the types of results commonly seen at the clinic, and any other hair related queries that may arise.
You will get a general idea of pricing structures and sample treatment plans, however it is not possible to provide clients with specific details before a consultation has been completed with the surgeon.
Before going ahead with any procedure, you must first attend a consultation with the surgeon, even if you have already attended the free consultation with the technician.
Full Surgical Consultation - What's Involved?
When you attend a full consultation you will speak with the actual surgeon who will be performing your treatments, in this case, Dr.Sam van Eeden.
The surgeon will perform a comprehensive examination, including medical history, microscopic examination of the scalp and hair, blood tests, follicle count and so forth, to develop an accurate diagnosis of all of the factors contributing to your particular hair loss.
Based on these examinations, the surgeon will develop a bespoke and individualized treatment plan for you, incorporating any of the relevant surgical and non-surgical treatments.
This will also give you an accurate breakdown of the exact costs involved in the treatments recommended.
The cost for this consultation is €170, it will last for up to 90 minutes, and this includes all testing performed on the day, excluding any rare special testing that may be required in special circumstances.
Once you have received your treatment plan, there is no obligation to proceed with any form of procedure. The NuaCell team will work with you to ensure all of your needs are met.
Regenerative Medicine and Hair Loss
In many cases, especially in mild and early stage hair loss, it is possible to avoid ever needing a surgical procedure such as an FUE hair transplant. Regenerative options, such as PRP, PRF and so forth, provide an avenue of treatment for clients who may not need or want a transplant, and while they are often used in conjunction with surgery, these treatments have been very successfully used to regrow hair, increase density and reduce the need for more intrusive procedures.
How can regenerative medicine help?
Hair loss can be caused by a variety of different factors. In most cases it is a progressive, degenerative condition linked to genetic factors. In some cases hair loss can also be caused by medical conditions, stress, injury and other factors. It is extremely important to determine the cause of the hair loss before considering treatment.
In cases of male or female pattern hair loss, the hair follicle is attacked by DHT (dihydrotestosterone), which causes the follicle to shrink in a process called miniaturisation. The blood supply to the hair is impaired, and the follicle does not receive essential nutrients to grow, so it eventually shuts down completely. Regenerative medicine can help reverse this process, by stimulating the increase in blood supply to the follicles, the release of vital growth factors in the scalp, and the activation of special stem cells responsible for hair growth.
How do the the treatments work?
Treating hair loss involves a holistic approach. As this is generally an ongoing condition, it requires a carefully developed plan to manage properly. Regenerative treatments will often be prescribed in conjunction with each other, as part of a combination therapy, which means several treatments will be used together over a course of time to achieve the best results. Which treatments are recommended, and how often they are required, depends entirely on the individual case and the extent of the hair loss.
A common misconception with these treatments, such as PRP for example, is that these are ‘one-stop’ or ‘quick fix’ treatments. This is not correct, as hair loss requires some level of ongoing management.
Conditions
Below are some of the more common hair loss conditions treated at NuaCell, for both men and women. This list is by no means exhaustive. However what is important to note is that each case is examined individually before a recommendation is made for any treatment. This will generally involve a physical examination and potentially further testing to properly diagnose the condition.
Client Reviews
Our Blog
Latest Articles
Telomere Testing
Telomere Testing at NuaCell In the world of aging and longevity, we are starting to look deeper and deeper into our biology and physiology in the search for answers to questions we all have about getting older, degeneration, illness, disease and our own...
Sports and Musculoskeletal Injuries
Injuries are part of life. Aches, pains, breaks and sprains, injuries are a part of life for nearly everyone. Whether you’re an elite level career athlete, a casual exercise enthusiast or a relatively inactive individual, time takes a toll on our bodies....
The Human Regeneration Project Podcast!
The Benefit of Podcasts? Thanks to modern technology, there are so many different ways to equip yourself with all of the information you need when it comes to making a decision about your health. On of the more recent ways of accessing a huge amount of...
Are you suitable for treatment?
Why not find out?
Interested in the topic?
Join our mailing list! Our newsletter will contain articles, blogs and podcasts relating to the newest advances in stem-cell based therapies, regenerative medicine and all of the available treatments to improve your health and wellness.
You have Successfully Subscribed!