Hair Loss Treatments

Both men and women may experience hair thinning, recession and loss of hair follicles over time. For many people, hair loss (alopecia) causes associated psychological distress, loss of self esteem and poor body image

If these issues concern you, it is important to see a doctor for assessment as in many cases there are safe and effective treatment options.

Men The most common reason for male hair thinning and loss is androgenic alopecia, also called male pattern baldness. Some men experience symptoms starting in their late teens / early twenties. There is a strong genetic determinant to androgenic alopecia, causing increased sensitivity to dihydrotestosterone, a male hormone in the scalp, and subsequent loss of hair growth. The good news is that current treatments are effective in 9/10 men. Long term use can prevent further hair loss, increase hair thickness and even help new hair to grow.

Women Women also suffer from hair thinning and recession. Sometimes alopecia is transient, a condition called telogen effluvium. Common triggers for telogen effluvium include pregnancy, labour, surgery and hormonal issues such as Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome or autoimmune conditions. Sometimes medications and other treatments can help. Unusual presentations of alopecia may require referral to a dermatologist, which can be arranged after your assessment. 

At Thrive Skin Clinic we take a standard dermatological approach to managing androgenic alopecia including topical solutions, oral DHT (hormone) blocking medications, shampoos if required and Platelet Rich Plasma (PRP) treatments. PRP is a treatment where we source your own growth factors from your blood and inject them back into the scalp. No kidding! - There is good evidence for PRP combined with minoxidil and DHT blockers, to restore hair and prevent hair loss.

The best candidates for PRP hair restoration are those with early hair loss and those who have androgenic alopecia.

Booking

Consultation time
Initial appointment is 20 minutes which will involve assessment and photos. Dr Grant will formulate a suitable treatment plan and you can choose to have your medications sent out to you from a chemist or source a local compounding pharmacy. Followup consultations are usually brief and can be done in person or via skype. There is no medicare rebate for a Skye consultation, however it is very convenient.

If you choose to have PRP treatments as part of your management plan this will be done at a separate consultation.

Recommended Plan
Medical Therapy: For male patients, medical therapy consists of minoxidil solution and /or a finasteride (DHT blocker) tablet. Clients are reviewed every 6 months. 90% of male clients respond to medical therapy after 1 year. For female patients, medical therapy consists of low dose minoxidil and spirinolactone, if these are deemed safe.

Healite 2: Low level laser has been shown to be effective for male and female alopecia, telogen effluvium and even chemotherapy induced alopecia. A series of treatments is required and can be done in the clinic.

PRP : The initial protocol is a PRP injections into the scalp monthly for 3 months. Some clients require further sessions. The maximum initial course we will ever do is 6 treatments. About 70-80% of people respond to initial treatment. If you are a responder we will continue your treatments and do a treatment every 6 - 12 months depending on your progress. Using our Regen system, a 10ml sample of blood will generate about 4-5ml of PRP, which is sufficient for most people.

Planning
PRP is not a quick fix. Best results are seen 2 months after final treatment (i.e. about 6 months after initial treatment). and can be expected to last 12 months or longer. If it is effective, if is safe to continue long term.

Pricing

We offer a competitive price delivered by reputable medical professionals and high quality TGA approved products.

Consultations with our doctor are as per standard AMA rates and do attract a medicare rebate.

  • Initial: 20 mins $148 with $72.80 rebate from medicare

  • Followup: $81 with $37.60 rebate from medicare

  • Skype consult: (followup only): $40 e.g. script renewal

Cost of PRP sessions:

  • Small treatment area ( 1 vial PRP)

    • $500 for single treatment

    • 3 treatments : $1350

  • Larger areas ( 2 vials PRP)

    • $900 (large area)

    • 3 treatments: $2400

We use the latest automatic V2 injector device for PRP treatments, which provides a more accurate, safe and rapid treatment than manual injection.

Recent Research Articles

  • Platelet-rich plasma shows efficacy in combination treatment for androgenetic alopecia (Adil A, et al. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2017;

    • in summary PRP & topical minoxidil are better than finasteride and PRP for men and women with male pattern baldness