A Study to Assess the Efficacy of Fractional Carbon Dioxide Laser with Topical Platelet-Rich Plasma in the Treatment of Androgenetic Alopecia

January 2022 in “ Lasers in Medical Science ”

Sujirod Hanthavichai, Nattinee Archavarungson, Thanwa Wongsuk

fractional carbon dioxide laser platelet-rich plasma androgenetic alopecia hair regrowth total hair density terminal hair density high pulse energy low pulse energy patient satisfaction adverse events fractional CO2 laser PRP male pattern baldness hair growth hair density high energy low energy patient feedback side effects

Studysummary This pilot study reported significant improvement in hair restoration and patient satisfaction with the use of fractional carbon dioxide laser followed by platelet-rich plasma, showing greater hair density increases using higher laser pulse energy settings in individuals with androgenetic alopecia. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.

The study assessed the effectiveness of fractional carbon dioxide laser followed by platelet-rich plasma application on hair regrowth in seven participants with androgenetic alopecia. The participants underwent ten treatment sessions every two weeks with a 12-week follow-up. The study found that both groups showed significantly increased total and terminal hair densities during treatment compared to baselines. The mean total hair density increased significantly more with high pulse energy (1.42 hair/cm2) compared to low pulse energy (1.04 hair/cm2) throughout the study period (p = 0.023; 4.89 hair/cm2). Patient satisfaction scores demonstrated improvement, with statistical significance (p = 0.029). The average pain intensity scores were not different between the groups (p = 0.760). The adverse events were minor and well tolerated. The study concluded that this synergistic treatment leads to hair restoration and high patient satisfaction, with the parameters of 22-mJ beam energy with 400 spots/cm2 density being superior to 12-mJ beam energy with 800 spots/cm2.

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