what are the alternatives to minoxidil for hair loss treatment minoxidil is
often the first treatment you try when you experience hair loss this is of
course because it's readily available and over-the-counter without a
prescription while minoxidil does have some benefits
for many people with genetic pattern hair loss the effect of minoxidil has
limitations the application must be consistent and there are often issues
with your skin's tolerance so many people don't want to continue this
ongoing treatment I'll discuss why many people eventually give up using
minoxidil and the option of having more effective treatments for hair loss in
comparison to minoxidil I'm Dr. Amiya Prasad I'm a
Board-certified cosmetic surgeon and Fellowship-trained oculofacial plastic
and reconstructive surgeon I've been in practice in the New York City and Long
Island area for over 25 years I've helped people with hair loss throughout
my career specifically with surgical hair transplantation I'm also the
founder of TrichoStem Hair Regeneration centers which is a non-surgical
treatment for male and female pattern hair loss which I established from 2011
to the present time TrichoStem Hair Regeneration is the original treatment
that inspired the use of a cell on PRP for hair loss as a treatment category
our unique approach to the application of ACell and PRP has resulted in
significant hair growth for 99 percent of our patients for over three to five
years was only one to two treatment sessions people with hair loss typically
seek an alternative to minoxidil because they see some benefit in the beginning
of its use but then the minoxidil appears to stop working after a little
bit of time minoxidil was originally a medicine used for high
blood pressure and with a noted official side effect for hair that
ultimately became its primary use while the exact mechanism of minoxidil effect
is unknown it appears to delay the onset of normal hair shedding and this Carter
the shedding phase is called the telogen phase and it also appears to extend the
active hair growth cycle called the anagen phase by extending hair growth
and delaying hair shedding more hair is present which gives the scalp more
coverage however minoxidil doesn't appear to actually thicken individually
thinning hairs nor does it significantly slow down they progressive thinning of
hair before permanent hair loss if the regular application of minoxidil is
stopped which many people do after they note improved hair coverage its effect
can also stop quite abruptly and it leads to a sudden a significant degree
of hair shedding that can be often distressing I find minoxidil to have
limited value for long-term use as the benefits are less than optimal and rely
on the daily scalp application while the instructions say to use it twice a day
application once a day is sufficient due to the drugs inherent half-life many
people report scalp irritation and redness from minoxidil which can be
relieved in many cases by using minoxidil foam instead of the liquid
form this is because minoxidil foam doesn't contain propylene glycol the
chemical used to break down the scalp skin barrier in order to allow
penetration of this active ingredient however people using the foam will also
complain of scalp irritation as well as other related issues like skin flaking
and itching for men a limitation of minoxidil is that it does not affect DHT
or dihydrotestosterone DHT is an important factor in male
pattern hair loss drugs such as finasteride or doot asteroid can have a
significant effect on the rate of hair loss progression which minoxidil cannot
unfortunately women with female pattern hair loss do not have the option of
using finasteride minoxidil is the only topical pharmaceutical treatment for
female pattern hair loss since women are often prescribed for an a lactam which
is a testosterone blocker with some variable levels of benefit that is an
option as of 2011 my approach to the medical management of hair loss changed
after we used a cellular matrix to enhance our hair transplant surgical
results I was using the advanced wound healing material called extracellular
matrix by ACell to optimize surgical incisions for facelifts as well as other
cosmetic and reconstructive surgeries I applied this experience to help improve
the healing of the donor area incision for a hair transplant surgery as well as
to improve the survival of hair grafts about a year after surgery I found the
native thinning hairs in areas without hair grafts increased in number and was
growing remarkably thicker I started working in 2011 on combining
extracellular matrix by a cell with platelet-rich plasma in an effort to see
if I could create a standalone non-surgical procedure for male and
female pattern hair loss after several years of working on different
formulations treatment strategies and techniques I realized that we now had a
system which can help men and women with hair loss without needing surgery this
treatment system which I trademarked TrichoStem Hair Regeneration has
essentially been the most significant step in the management of hair loss
since the introduction of finasteride in the late 90s the success rate of
treatment in men and women is over 99 percent defined by an improvement in
hair quantity and quality unlike the generic PRP or ordinary ACell and PRP
treatments being offered in the marketplace which require multiple
treatment sessions which is about every 1 to 3 months in the first year and
continuing maintenance injections in the second year and beyond
most of our TrichoStem Hair Regeneration patients only need one or two treatment
sessions with outcomes that sustain and last 3 to 5 years and longer one of the
things I do for my patient to receive TrichoStem Hair Regeneration is that I
generally help them stop needing to use minoxidil most people are relieved by
not having the burden of this twice daily scalp applications which can be
both irritating and cause your hair to look matted down and flattened in fact
TrichoStem Hair Regeneration patients require no special shampoos or other
topical therapies for maintenance in my opinion minoxidil is no longer a
necessary part of hair loss management we have created effective and convenient
hair loss management strategies which can be used more predictably with
significant benefit and long-term sustainability without the need for
daily topical scalp treatment I hope you found this information helpful thank you
for your question