The effect of platelet-rich plasma on female androgenetic alopecia: a randomized controlled trial
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) may be a useful treatment for androgenetic alopecia (AGA), although objective studies are needed.
OBJECTIVE
To determine whether PRP injections improve female AGA.
METHOD
Prospective, randomized controlled trial of 30 females diagnosed with AGA. Patients received subdermal scalp injections of Eclipse system PRP or placebo saline at weeks 0, 4 and 8. Outcome measures were changes in hair density (hair/cm2), hair caliber (mm), and blinded global photographic assessment (improved or not improved) at week 24.
RESULTS
Blinded global photographic assessment indicated that 57% of PRP patients vs. 7% of saline patients improved at week 24 from baseline (p<0.01). Compared to baseline, there was improvement in mean density in the PRP group vs. the placebo group at week 8 (+71.1 vs. -26.7 hairs/cm2, p<0.01) and week 24 (+105.9 vs. -52.4 hairs/cm2, p<0.01). Compared to baseline, there was improvement in mean caliber in the PRP group vs. the placebo group at week 8 (+0.0043 vs. -0.0034 mm, p<0.01) and week 24 (+0.0053 vs. -0.0060 mm, p<0.01). Adverse effects included headache, scalp tightness, swelling, redness, and post-injection bleeding.
LIMITATIONS
Two patients lost to follow-up.
CONCLUSION
PRP with the Eclipse system is a safe and effective intervention for female AGA.
How strong is the evidence?
Evidence Hub reads this as a randomized trial, done in people. Its evidence level is 2 of 5 (High · randomized trial). Randomized trials of a reasonable size are the strongest single-study design.
Read the paper
Related studies
- Sarcopenia, sarcopenic overweight/obesity and risk of cardiovascular disease and cardiac arrhythmia: A cross-sectional study
- Workplace Violence Is Associated With Impaired Work Functioning in Nurses: An Italian Cross-Sectional Study
- Vagus Nerve Dysfunction in the Post-COVID-19 Condition: a pilot cross sectional study
- Association Between Metabolic Associated Fatty Liver Disease and Chronic Kidney Disease: A Cross-Sectional Study from NHANES 2017–2018
- Efficacy and safety of solifenacin succinate 10 mg once Daily: A multicenter, phase III, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-group trial in patients with overactive bladder
- Association between triglyceride glucose‐body mass index and hypertension in Chinese adults: A cross‐sectional study
Go deeper in Evidence Hub
Evidence Hub adds a study data sheet (design, sample size, evidence level, key numbers), an AI summary and a chat grounded in the paper's text.