Alopecia (Hair Loss)
Everyone loses hair. It is considered normal to lose approximately 50-100 hairs every day. If you notice bald patches, or lots of thinning, however, you may be experiencing hair loss. Alopecia is the clinical term for baldness or hair loss. It can happen seemingly completely randomly, and can affect everything from small patches to your entire body or scalp. It affects women and men, and there are a variety of causes that can worsen it (such as stress, poor diet, and/or changing hormones).
Alopecia can be caused by a number of factors including, hormones, genetics, medical conditions, and stress, as well as autoimmune conditions.
Dr. Lombardi, from the Skin Cancer and Cosmetic Surgery Center of NJ, is an alopecia specialist with years of experience treating hair loss in men and women. At your initial appointment, the doctor will carefully examine your scalp and hair and review your medical history with you. In the course of the exam, she may pull out a hair. The reason Dr. Lombardi may need to pull out a hair is to gather important evidence for analysis. Additionally, she may need to examine the hair on the rest of your body to compare the amount of hair. In some cases, Dr. Lombardi may do a scalp biopsy.
Once we have determined the cause of your hair loss, Dr. Lombardi will create a custom treatment plan. Below are some treatments the doctor may employ.
How specialists at SCCSNJ treat hair loss:
Though hair loss can never be “cured,” the effects can be treated, and hair can grow back.
- PRP injections: for this treatment, a small amount of your blood is drawn (usually from your arm) and then placed in a centrifuge to separate the platelets and plasma from the other parts of the blood. The platelets are rich in growth factors that stimulate collagen, tissue, and cell regeneration, including attracting stem cells to the repair site. The plasma is injected into areas of hair loss which promote blood circulation to the follicle and cell repair at the shaft of the follicle to promote longer and thicker hair.
Are there any risks? It’s your own blood injected into your scalp, so there are no complications regarding communicable diseases, but the standard risks involved in any injection or blood-drawing processes apply.
How soon will I see results? 4-6 weeks, but additional and continuing treatments may be necessary for continued improvement. - Steroid injections: corticosteroids are injected at the site of the affected area(s) every 4-6 weeks. The steroids act as anti-inflammatories, which help mitigate hair loss caused by an autoimmune attack on the hair follicle and its surrounding cells.
Are there any risks? The standard risks involved in any injection or blood-drawing processes apply. In addition, cortisone thins the skin, so caution is exercised when using it in sensitive areas such as around the eyebrows.
How soon will I see results? 4-6 weeks, but additional and continuing treatments may be necessary for continued improvement. - Vitamin Supplementation: sometimes alopecia is simply a result of a diet lacking vitamins essential for hair growth. Many diets today are based on eliminating certain foods that unfortunately contain the essential vitamins and proteins your body needs for proper function. The B-vitamin biotin is an over-the-counter supplement that is safe, even in large doses, and is also suitable for pregnant women. It promotes hair growth by aiding the metabolic function in the body that physically constructs hair and follicles. Keratin is what builds the hair follicle, and biotin is what breaks down the dietary proteins that turn into amino acids to be used to build keratin. In other words, biotin promotes keratin production in the body, which stimulates overall hair growth.
How soon will I see results? 8-12 weeks.
Book an appointment with Dr. Lombardi and the team at the Skin Cancer and Cosmetic Surgery Center today!