How Does Hair Growth Scalp Microneedling Work

By Nuha Handoush, Laser Technician

Astoria Laser Clinic & Med Spa

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How Does Hair Growth Scalp Microneedling Work

Fifty percent of men and 33% of women suffer from hair loss. This is a progressive problem that may affect a patient's confidence, self-esteem, career opportunities, and personal relationships.

Traditional non-invasive treatments can be helpful and many people have had success with medications such as Propecia which is a prescribed medication taken orally, and Minoxidil, which is an over the counter topical medication.

These medications can be expensive since you have to use them every day for as long as you want to regrow hair. If you stop taking them you will lose whatever hair you grew. The success reports on these medications is mixed. They do work, but to what degree, and at what cost and what aggravation.

There are, of course, more invasive treatments like hair transplants. This procedure requires some fairly major surgical procedures on your scalp, and long process, a generally painful recovery, and a pretty big price tag.

Another method is “microneedling”. Microneedling works by causing small, pin-prick sized wounds in the skin. These aren't wounds in the classic sense of the word, they are tiny holes that your body will react to by initiating the healing response.

This procedure stimulates cellular activity in the hair follicle to regrow hair. Scalp needling with infusion of a growth factor increases cellular activity to heal the dying hair follicles, resulting in thicker, fuller, healthier looking hair.

This procedure activates the body's wound healing response. The theory goes that this response could be utilized to reverse alopecia, the male pattern hair loss. After 12 weeks patients will see a change in the baseline hair count.

Patient self-assessment of hair growth found that wound healing opened an embryonic window of opportunity in which dormant molecular pathways were awakened. The result is more, stronger and healthier hair.