Platelet-rich plasma has been touted as a potential treatment for alopecia and thinning hair. Now a new in vivo study, “Promotional Effect of Platelet-Rich Plasma on Hair Follicle Reconstitution in vivo” (Dermatologic Surgery, December 2013), reveals that a 10% concentration of PRP, when added to cultured epidermal and dermal papilla cells, increases hair density.
Miao, et al, of the Department of Plastic and Aesthetic Surgery, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China, and the Department of Pharmacy, Nanfang Hospital, Southern Medical University, Guangzhou, China, mixed freshly isolated epidermal cells and cultured dermal papilla cells (DPCs) with various concentrations of activated PRP. The cells were then transferred to a grafting chamber that was implanted onto the dorsal skin of nude mice. After one week, the chambers were removed and hair follicle formation was monitored for four weeks. They found a significant difference in newly formed follicles in the PRP-enhanced cells (344+/-27 with 10% PRP vs. 288+/- without PRP).
They write, “We observed a significant difference (p < .05) in the number of newly formed follicles in the area of reconstituted skin (344 ± 27 with 10% PRP vs 288 ± 35 without PRP). PRP also shortened the time of hair formation significantly; the first hairs were observed in 18 ± 1 days using 10% PRP, versus 20 ± 1 days without PRP.”
Image copyright istockphoto.com
