First off, it’s a treatment that’s meant to address hair loss by, you guessed it, stimulating new hair growth.
Second, it’s the newest service Dr. Jeff Popp offers.
Potential to heal hair loss
PRP stands for Platelet-Rich Plasma.
“Platelets contain all the growth factors (about 10 to 15) that are used by the body to repair things,” Dr. Popp explains. “So when you cut yourself, platelets cause the blood to clot, then a scab forms. The platelets then open up and release the growth factors. We are using the platelets just for the growth factors, not for their clotting capabilities”.
It helps to think of platelets as the second cousin of stem cells. They, too, have the potential heal what ails us. In fact, Dr. Popp said some people who inject stem cells add PRP to enhance the effect.
And, as it happens, injecting PRP into the scalp is the new big thing for people with thinning hair or hair loss.
How PRP works
“The growth factors stimulate the hair follicles to grow hair. It takes about three treatments approximately four weeks apart to see hair growth,” Dr. Popp said. “After that, you would just need a maintenance visit once every six months or once per year.”
He said the results seem promising.
“It’s not a difficult process,” he says. “We draw blood which we put into a special vial, then it’s into the centrifuge to spin it down. We draw off the platelets from the blood after it separates into different layers.”
The PRP is put into a syringe and then injected into your scalp. He said your scalp is numbed with a topical cream before the injections begin so you don’t feel anything.
Proof of effectiveness
It’s not expensive to do PRP. The price range per treatment is somewhere between $300 and $500.
So far he’s only seen men for the procedure but expects at some point soon there will be women who give it a try. He knows many are waiting and watching to see if it works.
“Two guys who recently had the procedure said it was a piece of cake,” Dr. Popp said.
Considering PRP hair treatments? Set up your consultation with Dr. Popp at 402.391.4558.
