Is it good to have PRP treatment during HT?

[Kilopster]

My doctor suggested me to have is it good to have PRP treatment during HT and he not charging extra for it, is it any good to have PRP?

[JoeTillman]

My doctor suggested me to have is it good to have PRP treatment during HT and he not charging extra for it, is it any good to have PRP?

PRP doesn't have any sort of standard to help you feel safe with it's application. Every clinic does it a little bit different, most do it drastically different, from the next guy. It is unregulated and it is like the wild west.

IF your doctor has a proven protocol and can show undeniable evidence that it works WITHOUT a hair transplant then it can be considered. BUT, if you can't be shown any proof then maybe not taking your doctor up on the offer is a better idea. I mean, if they can't prove that it works, why bother accepting it? There are reports that some cases of PRP application can induce a telogen effluvium and wind up causing more (cosmetic) harm than good.

[Kilopster]

Thanks for your reply. What I can summarize is PRP do to have any benefits as such. And looking at the other forums there is no evidence that it yield any good results.

I am not sure why Dr all around the world still suggest this process?

[Driver]

Just one man's opinion here but I find the data in support of PRP to be weak at best. The data does not show that PRP is harmful, but benefits appear to be limited or nonexistent depending on the study you read. Plus, at many centers this is not cheap. I think you can have HT without PRP just fine.

To cite a few studies showing either limited or no benefit:

Ferneini EM, Beauvais D, Castiglione C, Ferneini MV. Platelet-Rich Plasma in
Androgenic Alopecia: Indications, Technique, and Potential Benefits. J Oral
Maxillofac Surg. 2016 Nov 15. pii: S0278-2391(16)31170-3. doi:
10.1016/j.joms.2016.10.040. [Epub ahead of print] Review. PubMed PMID: 27918883.

Puig CJ, Reese R, Peters M. Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study on
the Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Women With Female Androgenetic Alopecia.
Dermatol Surg. 2016 Nov;42(11):1243-1247. PubMed PMID: 27608205.

Garg S. Outcome of Intra-operative Injected Platelet-rich Plasma Therapy
During Follicular Unit Extraction Hair Transplant: A Prospective Randomised Study
in Forty Patients. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2016 Jul-Sep;9(3):157-164. PubMed PMID:
27761085; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5064679.

Alves R, Grimalt R. Randomized Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind, Half-Head
Study to Assess the Efficacy of Platelet-Rich Plasma on the Treatment of
Androgenetic Alopecia. Dermatol Surg. 2016 Apr;42(4):491-7. doi:
10.1097/DSS.0000000000000665. PubMed PMID: 27035501.

Lynch MD, Bashir S. Applications of platelet-rich plasma in dermatology: A
critical appraisal of the literature. J Dermatolog Treat. 2016;27(3):285-9. doi:
10.3109/09546634.2015.1094178. Review. PubMed PMID: 26466811.

[Pittdawg]

Just one man's opinion here but I find the data in support of PRP to be weak at best. The data does not show that PRP is harmful, but benefits appear to be limited or nonexistent depending on the study you read. Plus, at many centers this is not cheap. I think you can have HT without PRP just fine.

To cite a few studies showing either limited or no benefit:

Ferneini EM, Beauvais D, Castiglione C, Ferneini MV. Platelet-Rich Plasma in
Androgenic Alopecia: Indications, Technique, and Potential Benefits. J Oral
Maxillofac Surg. 2016 Nov 15. pii: S0278-2391(16)31170-3. doi:
10.1016/j.joms.2016.10.040. [Epub ahead of print] Review. PubMed PMID: 27918883.

Puig CJ, Reese R, Peters M. Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study on
the Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Women With Female Androgenetic Alopecia.
Dermatol Surg. 2016 Nov;42(11):1243-1247. PubMed PMID: 27608205.

Garg S. Outcome of Intra-operative Injected Platelet-rich Plasma Therapy
During Follicular Unit Extraction Hair Transplant: A Prospective Randomised Study
in Forty Patients. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2016 Jul-Sep;9(3):157-164. PubMed PMID:
27761085; PubMed Central PMCID: PMC5064679.

Alves R, Grimalt R. Randomized Placebo-Controlled, Double-Blind, Half-Head
Study to Assess the Efficacy of Platelet-Rich Plasma on the Treatment of
Androgenetic Alopecia. Dermatol Surg. 2016 Apr;42(4):491-7. doi:
10.1097/DSS.0000000000000665. PubMed PMID: 27035501.

Lynch MD, Bashir S. Applications of platelet-rich plasma in dermatology: A
critical appraisal of the literature. J Dermatolog Treat. 2016;27(3):285-9. doi:
10.3109/09546634.2015.1094178. Review. PubMed PMID: 26466811.

This study seems like pretty good evidence supporting PRP: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/27035501

[Driver]

I would call the Alves study fair evidence (as opposed to "pretty good evidence.") The study is well constructed but has a very low number of patients. Patients served as their own internal controls, which is always a plus. Still, at best they say it can be considered as an adjuvant treatment.

Again, I am not saying PRP is harmful, I just think that for the cost the benefit is, at best, modest and it may in fact do nothing.