Dr Cooley 1,538 FUT +PRP/ACell in Female

This woman is in her early 30's and has been experiencing hair loss for almost 10 years. She has been on spironolactone and minoxidil for 7 years but there was still some progression in her hair loss despite medical therapy. In addition, she is a long distance runner and in my opinion she had inadequate protein intake. We advised a better diet and she began using Help Hair protein shake. Her donor density was low and we were only able to harvest 1,538 grafts (2,454 hairs), which we focused in the frontal core. We performed PRP/ACell at the time of the FUT and at 6 months. She is shown at 12 months.

I'm always happy to see successful outcomes for female patients because they tend to be more difficult to treat than males across the board. This is an excellent result.

Dr. Cooley,

It's no secret that I'm not a fan of PRP and Acell. I had hopes for Acell early on but never really for PRP. You are one of the leaders in both areas regarding their respective hair loss applications and because of you I have kept at least somewhat of an open mind about their use, of which I am open to learning more. With regards to this patient, and I'm not asking for hard numbers, what is your feeling about how either or both have influenced the final result you have presented?

what is acell ?

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Originally Posted by JoeTillman

I'm always happy to see successful outcomes for female patients because they tend to be more difficult to treat than males across the board. This is an excellent result.

Dr. Cooley,

It's no secret that I'm not a fan of PRP and Acell. I had hopes for Acell early on but never really for PRP. You are one of the leaders in both areas regarding their respective hair loss applications and because of you I have kept at least somewhat of an open mind about their use, of which I am open to learning more. With regards to this patient, and I'm not asking for hard numbers, what is your feeling about how either or both have influenced the final result you have presented?

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Joe

Thanks for your comments. Since the patient has been on spironolactone and minoxidil for over 7 years, these do not in any way contribute to the improvement seen here. The grafts, which weren't very many, were only placed in the front central area. Yet, there is clearly significant improvement outside the grafted area. This due to PRP/ACell, plus some contribution possibly from the Help Hair shake.

I have treated many patients over the last 5 years with PRP/ACell. Overall, it is much like finasteride or minoxidil in that improvement is variable among different patients. So while the results can be very similar to these medical treatments, its performance as a treatment is like a surgery where the success will be dependent on how the doctor actually does the procedure. The results from PRP in one clinic can be very different than another's, just like FUT or FUE. There are numerous variables that will go into success from PRP.

For me PRP/ACell fills a needed niche. Is it perfect? Nope. Neither is finasteride, minoxidil, or FUT/FUE for that matter. Its just one more tool in my armamentarium to try and help patients who come to see me.

Hi Dr. Cooley,

Thank you for your answer. For some reason I never saw an update notice that you had responded to my questions. Regardless, your points make sense and you have a rational and safe approach regarding the respective treatments and how they can apply to different patients. The result seen in this presenation is compelling to say the least and supports your position well. I can see why you offer it. Well done!