Is Laser Hair Regrowth Possible And Do Hair Transplants Work?
When you look at the mirror do you fondly reminisce about how soft, dense, and lustrous your hair used to be? If you do, I bet you’d do almost anything to stem the hair loss and repopulate that receding hairline. Laser hair regrowth and hair transplants are some of the available options .
Beauty and fashion magazines bombard us daily with pictures of male and female models with thick, long, lustrous hair. Ads constantly inform us of revolutionary medical and herbal remedies, awesome DIY hacks, and non-surgical hair restoration techniques to get our hair back.
But what works and what doesn’t? Is laser hair regrowth really possible or are those just marketing gimmicks designed to empty our wallets? Are transplants viable and what are the expected results?
Causes of Hair Loss
Before we can look at the latest research on hair regrowth, let’s first examine why hair loss happens in the first place. The American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists reports that over 48% of Americans suffer from hormone-related hair loss after the age of 40. And the effects progress rapidly as one ages beyond age 60.
Hormonal imbalance and aging are just 2 of the common causes of hair loss. If you use harsh chemicals to treat or dye your hair in your youth, you may suffer hair loss further down the line.
A report by the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology in 2016 shows that skin conditions contribute to over 25% of hair loss conditions in people under the age of 35. Infectious skin conditions such as ringworm infections and scarring alopecia top the list of common causes of skin-infected hair loss.
Other health conditions that may cause hair loss include protein deficiency, low vitamin levels, and use of chemotherapy. Predetermined genetic factors also play a major role in hair loss.
How to Prevent Hair Loss
From early on, childhood, preteen, teenage years, you need to cultivate a culture of taking diligent care of your scalp and hair. Hair loss prevention requires proper hygiene, healthy diet, and regular shampooing.
Regular medical health screening including scalp biopsies, complete blood count (CBC), and thyroid function tests (TFT) can catch hair loss risk factors before they manifest.
Is Laser Hair Regrowth Possible?
The short and sweet answer is yes, laser hair regrowth is possible. But only under certain conditions. Laser hair regrowth is only possible if your scalp, hair shaft, and hair follicles are not severely damaged. Laser hair regrowth treatment rarely works on people with complete hair loss or with very little hair.
Low Level Laser Therapy (LLLT) works best on pattern baldness and thinning hair caused by hereditary conditions or androgenetic alopecia. On average, laser hair regrowth results are evident after about 20 weeks.
With LLLT hair regrowth, results may vary from one part of your scalp to another. Thus, the promotion of new hair growths may be uneven from some individuals.
For more predictable results, avoid the hand-held hair loss treatment laser devices available in the market for home use. Instead, get a thorough examination from an expert and opt for a specialist-performed treatment. The specialist will be able to determine which areas are likely to respond best to laser therapy and which areas may resist treatment. The specialist will also come up with an individualized treatment plan suitable for your unique needs.
Do Hair Transplants Work?
When hair regrowth the natural way or using LLLT fails, hair transplants offer a wonderful and viable option. So, does hair transplant work? Yes. Modern hair transplants work on over 85% of patients. While techniques have changed a lot over the past few decades, doctors have been doing medical hair restoration transplants since the 1950s.
The BHRC team mainly uses the Follicular Unit Extraction (FUE) technique. This minimally invasive procedure involves the specialist removing hair one by one from the dense area at the back of your head and transplanting them to the affected bald spots. The hair in the dense area will cover the removed hair as it grows back while the transplanted follicles will naturally grow in the bald spots.
The procedure uses local anesthetic and the patient remains fully conscious throughout. The whole procedure takes anywhere between 4 and 8 hours. Time depends on size of treatment area, area to be treated, number of specialists, quality of equipment, and skill levels.
Expectations After Hair Transplant Procedure
The FUE recovery period is about 7 days. You may experience some pain and discomfort the first few days and the doctor may leave your scalp bandaged for up to 4 days. Some initial bleeding in the donor area occurs for some patients during the procedure but never lasts to the recovery period.
FUE procedure leaves no linear scarring and is undetectable after recovery, except for the new growth of hair. The donor hair feels, moves, and grows naturally. Just the way it used to before your hair loss. You will not need pills to stimulate further growth. The new hair can be combed and styled as desired.
Final Verdict on Laser Hair Regrowth and Hair Transplants
Laser treatment reactivates stem cells leading to a new growth of hair in balding spots. It works best for people with androgenetic alopecia. It may not work for you if you have complete hair loss or if your scalp and hair follicles are adversely damaged.
Hair transplants work on the modern FUE technique. It is a minimally invasive procedure with a downtime of about 1 week. Since the transplants use your own hair, the hair will grow naturally and complete results are visible within 6 months. The results are permanent and the hair looks and feels natural. It can be styled and combed as you like.
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