ACell, a Current Review of Applications in Hair Transplant Surgery

[KeepHoping]

Guinea Pig

I would gladly be a guinea pig for this, it has caused me enough suffering and I would be glad to take one for the team for us to find results, nobody deserves to deal with hair loss at a young age, I would gladly volunteer to take part in an experiment and I am a US citizen.

[KeepHoping]

Dr. Cole,

with the recent developments showing some thickening of native hair with PRP/Acell (and the idea of taking stem cells from the hip for the PRP as Dr. Hitzig is starting to experiment with) are you going to implement PRP/Acell needling along with your FUE procedures with grafts dipped in Acell to see if you get the robust outcomes and the hair counts that far exceed the amount of grafts transplanted as reported by these doctors? Or at least to try it and see what kind of result you could get? I would fly to Atlanta to see you if it was something you would be willing to try out, I would put up before and after pictures and would be happy to be your Guinea Pig for the experiment.

[RichardDawkins]

On behalve of me and a lot of other people i say

Thank you KeepHoping

[HairRobinHood]

Now who really thinks that if you leave only this tiny round part in the donor area and remove the rest of the intact follicle that you will get 100% regrowth in the donor area?

Lection #1 …

During the 70s, a well-known and respected researcher tried to develop a surgical procedure which involves “direct scraping” of the sweat glands by using a special “tissue shaver”, in an effort for a radical treatment of hircismus and hyperhidrosis …

1978 Sep;62(3):355-60.

Abstract
We have developed a subcutaneous tissue shaver for the radical treatment of hircismus and hyperhidrosis. With this shaver the sweat glands can be removed from the undersurface of the axillary skin through a small incision. We report 3,000 cases of hircismus and hyperhidrosis treated by our method. The postoperative scar has been minimal, healing has been quick, and good results were achieved by this method.

Just a few month later, the well-known and respected researcher reported almost excited about an “unexpected side effect” as a result of his newly developed surgical procedure …

1978 Dec;4(12):921-5.

Abstract
A subcutaneous tissue "shaver" was used in the treatment of axillary bromhidrosis. Regeneration of axillary hair was observed postoperatively even if subcutaneous tissue and dermis were removed almost up to the level of sebaceous ducts. Hair regenerated more often in male patients whose sebaceous glands and follicular isthmus were designedly left intact than in female patients whose sebaceous glands were designedly removed completely. Some function of apocrine and eccrine glands tends to return over a two-year period.

Just about 5 month later: The well-known and respected researcher was “pissed off“ because his new developed subcutaneous tissue shaver didn’t always work in such a way, so that each and every part of the hair follicle (of course including the sebaceous glands too) is completely removed after his new surgical “tissue shaving” procedure, so that he finally suggested his colleagues via a scientific follow-up paper the following:

1979 May;5(5):407-11.

Abstract
From our experience, the most important requirement for permanent epilation by electrocoagulation is not only to destroy hair bulbs, but also to destroy the isthmal regions of hair follicles and the sebaceous glands.

The reason, why the researcher suggested this, because he observed on his 3000 treated patients (!), through histological studies etc, that even there is a TINY part of the hair follicle left behind within the tissue (after removal of practically almost the whole follicles including sebaceous glands), that this damn thing called “hair follicle” always fully regenerated and finally did again what it normally is doing best: producing hairs! – “unfortunately” including the sebaceous glands too. How bad concerning the researchers initial intention with his “tissue shaver”!

Conclusions

According to the well-known and respected researchers suggestions, I would recommend you doctors like Woods, Rassman, Bernstein or Cole etc, IF you really wish NO re-growth of removed hair follicles like through “FUE”. I can guarantee you an almost 100% success rate for no re-growth of follicles including hairs! So all these guys are definitely the way to gho for such procedures, as suggested and described by the mentioned well-known and respected researcher - or suggested in FUE studies (= how can I perfectly and once and for all destroy a patients hair follicle) by removal of "intact" hair follicles.

[RichardDawkins]

We are talking about PLUCKING as an additional treatment especially for people with depleated donor.

And instead of a long post with extracts from the 70s you could just cut to the chase if have something to report where balding people can benefit from.

But i see its another Gho praising

[John P. Cole, MD]

I may have confused some people about my involvement with Acell. I have been using Acell for over a year on humans. I first began following it in 2007.
It was used in veterinary applications long before it was indicated for humans. i own horses so i was interested in Acell.

I put Acell on my grafts. I use PRP. I put Acell in my extraction sites. I put PRP in my extraction sites. i also microneedle. i think the full menu offers more potential than any one alone.

i am open to doing a hair pluck trial. I've communicated with Dr. Cooley, but we have not discussed his technique. I think the first thing they could do is publish a video on how they pluck their hair followed by how they apply acell to the grafts. My bet is that they are working on a soluble form of Acell to coat the plucked follicles with, but they have limited experience with it yet. Dr. Hitzig should publish a video on how he is making his PRP from the occipital artery. I'm not sure i'm ready to go needling the hip for stem cells.

i have two soluble forms of Acell now that i use on my donor area extraction sites.

While i have my concerns about all this plucking business, i definitely have the tools to evaluate the results. I'm also curious how well it works especially in the donor area.

Look, here is hair regrowth in a donor area extraction site treated with Acell 2 months after the extraction procedure. Interesting.



i'm not sure you can publish a good quality video on this forum. Can you?

[RichardDawkins]

@Dr Cole : Nice to hear that you willing to test plucking. I think Keep Hoping will contact you then.

[SilverSurfer]

Not Again

Please let's keep focus on the main subject. If you want to brawl look for a chatroom.

[HairRobinHood]

Please let's keep focus on the main subject. If you want to brawl look for a chatroom.

The main subject? You'll find the main subject here:

http://www.baldtruthtalk.com/showpost.php?p=19088&postcount=1

... and in particular here.

http://www.baldtruthtalk.com/showpost.php?p=21870&postcount=259

[Bakez]

I may have confused some people about my involvement with Acell. I have been using Acell for over a year on humans. I first began following it in 2007.
It was used in veterinary applications long before it was indicated for humans. i own horses so i was interested in Acell.

I put Acell on my grafts. I use PRP. I put Acell in my extraction sites. I put PRP in my extraction sites. i also microneedle. i think the full menu offers more potential than any one alone.

i am open to doing a hair pluck trial. I've communicated with Dr. Cooley, but we have not discussed his technique. I think the first thing they could do is publish a video on how they pluck their hair followed by how they apply acell to the grafts. My bet is that they are working on a soluble form of Acell to coat the plucked follicles with, but they have limited experience with it yet. Dr. Hitzig should publish a video on how he is making his PRP from the occipital artery. I'm not sure i'm ready to go needling the hip for stem cells.

i have two soluble forms of Acell now that i use on my donor area extraction sites.

While i have my concerns about all this plucking business, i definitely have the tools to evaluate the results. I'm also curious how well it works especially in the donor area.

Look, here is hair regrowth in a donor area extraction site treated with Acell 2 months after the extraction procedure. Interesting.



i'm not sure you can publish a good quality video on this forum. Can you?

Is that growth just a one off though? Or have you been seeing more and more of these?

[John P. Cole, MD]

Of the top of my head, I've seen three cases where there was definite growth in the Acell extraction sites. In addition, the donor healing was much better than with typical FUE. I can usually spot a donor area that had FUE right away based on my experience level. The Acell treated donor area extraction sites heal better than anything i have ever seen. In fact, i had one case where i could not find any evidence that a procedure had been done.

Most of my patients come to me from other cities. That makes patient follow up much harder to accomplish. I suspect i will see more in the coming year who come back for a check up or more work. Until then, all i can say is that i'm very pleased with the results thus far. I need to see more results before i can consider this a major break through, however.

The enclosed photo was a patient who had over 1800 grafts to the frontal part of his scalp. When looking through his donor area, I could find a few white spots. I could find a few areas where i knew a graft had been taken, but the skin healed without any white spotting. I did not see as many extraction sites as there should have been, however. This clearly suggested that many extraction sites had regrowth. Actually, it more than suggested it. This case was from when i was using just Acell powder plus PRP. i could not be sure i was getting powder to all the sites back then. Then i came up with a mixture of hyaluronic acid and Acell. That is when i really could insure that i treated all the extraction sites or at least nearly all of them. Now i'm seeing much better healing in general and apparent regrowth in at least 3 cases. One of those donor areas was flawless. It blew me away.

[John P. Cole, MD]

Listen guys there are many people who read these forums whose hair loss has made them bitter. Sometimes they are bitter because they have lived with hair loss a long time and there is nothing they can do about it. Sometimes they are bitter because they had a bad result from a physician. Sometimes they are bitter because they did not feel they got the result they hoped for from their physician. They were not born this way. They were often dealt a bad hand by life. Responding in a bitter way is sometimes the only relief they have from the pain they feel inside. It may be their way of coping. I try to understand their pain and let them take it out on me. If hurting my feelings, makes them feel better then I'm willing to accept the humbling criticism.

[Bakez]

Of the top of my head, I've seen three cases where there was definite growth in the Acell extraction sites. In addition, the donor healing was much better than with typical FUE. I can usually spot a donor area that had FUE right away based on my experience level. The Acell treated donor area extraction sites heal better than anything i have ever seen. In fact, i had one case where i could not find any evidence that a procedure had been done.

Most of my patients come to me from other cities. That makes patient follow up much harder to accomplish. I suspect i will see more in the coming year who come back for a check up or more work. Until then, all i can say is that i'm very pleased with the results thus far. I need to see more results before i can consider this a major break through, however.

The enclosed photo was a patient who had over 1800 grafts to the frontal part of his scalp. When looking through his donor area, I could find a few white spots. I could find a few areas where i knew a graft had been taken, but the skin healed without any white spotting. I did not see as many extraction sites as there should have been, however. This clearly suggested that many extraction sites had regrowth. Actually, it more than suggested it. This case was from when i was using just Acell powder plus PRP. i could not be sure i was getting powder to all the sites back then. Then i came up with a mixture of hyaluronic acid and Acell. That is when i really could insure that i treated all the extraction sites or at least nearly all of them. Now i'm seeing much better healing in general and apparent regrowth in at least 3 cases. One of those donor areas was flawless. It blew me away.

OK

This is quite exciting then. It is a shame that it seems that scientific investigation in hair loss appears to be almost impossible. You have to wait months or a year to find out whether something worked, that is if you see the results again at all.

It must take a lot of organisation to record the methods used on each patient and then evaluate the results

[John P. Cole, MD]

Yes, studies are difficult and numbers is what you need to look at the data.

What i think we should do is get a group of physicians together and set up a protocol that we all follow. suppose 10 of us get 5 results that come back in over the next year. That would make 50 total results. The pooled data would probably give us some statistically significant data. We don't do that, however. What we do is one or two cases. You can't get any meaningful data from that.

Dr. Hitzig and Dr. Cooley have seen promising results with plucking hair. Now it is time to do the study. i'm all for being a part of that along with Drs. Rassman and Bernstein.

What i'm doing today is treating as many donor areas as possible with Acell. Eventually, i will have some data that means something, but it is going to take time. It is possible the results will show it only works on a small percentage, but i'll know at some point. It is not really all that expensive to treat a donor area with Acell. I annotate exactly what we do in each case. sometimes it is prp plus Acell. Sometimes it is just Acell.

i did a study recently that i submitted for publication. i treated a donor scar with 50 beard hair grafts and Acell. The growth was 96%. in the same patient i treated a different area of the donor scar with 6 chest hair. the result was a zero percent yield. In one patient, it is meaningless, but suggestive that more trials are necessary.

[wolvie1985]

Sorry Dr. Cole but you have avoided my question. I asked you to enlighten us as to how a hair that is 'groomed' is plucked differently than one that is plucked by Dr. Cooley and Hitzig. You responded with talk about the cells that emerge attached to the plucked hair and simply hypothesize that when the cells are attached, the donor won't regrow. You have no evidence to support this. There is no evidence to support your claim whatsoever that a hair that is plucked in a certain way it will not grow back (outside of repeated plucking of the same hair for years and years). When you pluck any hair, sometimes cells come out with it, sometimes it doesn't. This is why Cooley/Hitzig check each hair that is plucked and discards the ones that don't have the cells attached. But either way, cells attached or not, those hairs will regrow in the donor -- as has been repeatedly said, if the grooming business knew of a way to pluck a hair to ensure it wouldn't regrow, we'd have known it by now.