Platelet-rich plasma for androgenetic alopecia: a pilot study

Abstract

Background: Androgenetic alopecia is a common condition, with severe attendant psychosocial implications, and for which it is difficult to obtain a satisfactory degree of clinical improvement.

Objective: To explore the possible clinical benefit of injecting platelet-derived growth factors into the scalp of patients using a specific autologous blood concentrate.

Materials and methods: Two injections of a leukocyte platelet-rich plasma (L-PRP) with the addition of concentrated plasmatic proteins were administered at baseline and after 3 months (single spin at baseline and double-spin centrifugation at 3 months). Macrophotographs were taken at baseline and after 6 months, and 2 independent evaluators rated them using Jaeschke rating of clinical change.

Results: Sixty-four consecutive patients were enrolled. Some improvement was seen in all patients by 1 evaluator and in 62 by the other. The mean change in clinical rating was 3.2 (95% confidence interval [CI], 2.9-3.5) and 3.9 (95% CI, 3.5-4.3), and the proportion of patients reaching a clinically important difference was 40.6% and 54.7%, according to the 2 evaluators, respectively.

Conclusion: Our pilot study may provide preliminary evidence that this treatment may induce some degree of clinical advantage for male- and female-pattern baldness. This may warrant the design of randomized controlled clinical trials to formally test this procedure.