Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Pilot Study on the Use of Platelet-Rich Plasma in Women With Female Androgenetic Alopecia

Abstract

Platelet-rich plasma failed to demonstrate any statistically significant improvement in HMI or hair count in women with congenital female pattern hair loss. The patient survey results suggest a therapeutic advantage of PRP as perceived by patients but not according to hair count or HMI.

Effectiveness of Platelet-Rich Plasma for Androgenetic Alopecia: A Review of the Literature

“…In this study, however, only one treatment was administered and, of great importance, the PRP used was not activated, thereby impeding its full therapeutic potential. Nevertheless, they did document subjective improvement (such as less hair loss and improved hair thickness) [30]. In the studies where no statistical analysis was reported [12,32,35,36], the authors remarked positively on hair growth, volume, coverage, and mean hair density.…”

“…Further, neither a physician nor a subject self-assessment was performed. Another study, by Puig et al [30], did not detect significant improvement using objective measures (hair count or hair mass index) after PRP treatment. In this study, however, only one treatment was administered and, of great importance, the PRP used was not activated, thereby impeding its full therapeutic potential.…”

“…Each study employed a very unique treatment protocol. Of the studies reviewed, 7 mentioned the use of a control group [12,28,30,31,33,34,37], and 5 conducted the experiment without a control [27,29,32,35,36]. Five studies mentioned randomization of subjects into treatment or control groups [28,30,31,33,34], while 3 specifically mentioned that they did not randomize subjects [12,27,35], potentially introducing bias.…”

“…We elaborate on studies conducted in 2017 and 2016, which to the best of our knowledge, have not been collectively discussed in prior reviews. These studies include Anitua et al [29], Puig et al [30], Mapar et al [31], Gupta et al [32], and Alves and Grimalt [33]. Studies from 2015 (Singhal et al [12] and Gentile et al [34]), 2014 (Gkini et al [27], Khatu et al [35], Schiavone et al [36], and Cervelli et al [28]), and 2011 (Takikawa et al [37]) are also compared.…”

“…Puig et al [30] carried out a double-blind, randomized, placebo controlled, multicenter trial involving 26 women with female pattern hair loss. Fifteen women were randomized to the PRP group and 11 to the placebo group.…”