One doctor in Florida is now taking Latisse® from eyelash enhancer to hair restoration treatment. When one of his patients demonstrated an allergic reaction to the typical hair restoration medication Rogaine®, he suggested she use Latisse® to regrow thinning hair instead. Using a drop or two a day of Latisse® on the affected area along with a new daily vitamin regimen, the patient saw a reduction in the thinning of her hair in about four months.

However, there are definite disadvantages to using Latisse® for hair restoration including the high cost for an unproven treatment. While this one patient has benefited from the treatment, most scarring alopecias and those caused by immune problems most likely will not be improved.

Latisse® is not FDA approved for hair restoration on the scalp which means it hasn’t been tested in that area and any risks or potential long-term side effects haven’t been fully investigated. FDA approval for a new use of an already approved drug may take many years and cost millions. By the time it gets back to the patient, the price will surely be increased. For years this drug has been used in the eyes with a high degree of safety and no long term problems noted. On the skin some patients note a darkening and slight irritation when it is used on the upper eyelids.

When Latisse® is used to increase eyelash thickness and length, full results are often not seen until 16 weeks. It would not really stop the progression of hair loss for androgenetic alopecia patients, but possibly just lengthen and thicken the hairs like it does for the eyelids. Similarly, when used for eyelashes, results will gradually disappear if the treatment is stopped. The same can be assumed for the unapproved use of Latisse® as a hair restoration treatment. Once daily application is discontinued, the hair should eventually recede again leaving the user with the same thinning hair situation he or she started with.

Along the same lines, in order to maintain eyelashes grown by Latisse®, users must maintain a constant supply. While those using Latisse® for its FDA approved use for eyelashes may only need one bottle a month, those using it for hair restoration will need a much larger quantity given the size of the treatment area (3 or more of the 2-ounce bottles). With each prescription bottle of Latisse® costing an average of $100 to $150 a bottle, patients could easily spend upwards of $450 a month for as long as they want their hair restoration results to last. It seems like a high cost considering Latisse® does not promise to stop the progression of patterned baldness.

Currently FDA approved, topical and oral treatments like Rogaine®, Propecia®, and Proscar® are available to help slow and even stop hair loss; growing some hair back is also a possibility with some of these products. These products stop the progression of loss in over 80% of all patients who take/use them daily. If Latisse® does work, it would be applied in addition to the preventers of progression like Propecia®. Follicular unit hair transplant is a surgical procedure that produces permanent hair restoration results from hair loss as a result of hormones, trauma, androgenetic alopecia, and more. It’s important to remember that while off-label uses of products like Latisse® and Botox® do have potential, they also have potential for unexplored side effects until further studied.

For more information on the current list of FDA approved non-surgical and surgical hair restoration options, contact our office. We’re also on Facebook and Twitter with the latest news and update in hair restoration and research.

To keep up with the latest in hair loss and restoration news and updates, follow the Griffin Center on Facebook and Twitter!

Several research groups have shown that the application of low intensity laser light is effective in encouraging healthy hair growth in hair loss patients with androgenetic alopecia (female pattern baldness or male pattern baldness) and non-patterned types of alopecia.  Known as photobiomodulation of low-level laser therapy (LLLT) amongst hair restoration specialists, there are two schools of thought as to how this non-surgical hair restoration option really works.  According to studies published in the 1997 edition of The Hair Transplant Forum, this treatment works by increasing circulation to the dermal papilla, or bulb-shaped layer of skin surrounding the base of the hair follicle, thereby promoting enhanced hair growth.

Conversely, there are those, such as stated in the September 2010 issue of Cosmetic Dermatology magazine, that believe that the low level laser therapy increases the metabolic activity within the skin cells of the scalp exposed to the light to maximize hair growth.  Patients typically need 15-30 minutes of laser light exposure for 2-4 weeks followed by a series of equally long treatments 1-2 times per week over 6-12 months for maximum benefit.  In addition, most laser light hair loss treatments should be performed as an ancillary technique along with more traditional methods known to be effective such as topical and/or oral finasteride (Propecia®) and minoxidil (Rogaine®) treatment.

Laser light hair loss treatment is currently available in two forms:  1) a hood type device (similar to commercial hair dryers) in your hair transplant surgeon or hair restoration physician’s office that emits low doses of laser light to the patient under the supervision of an experienced hair loss professional or 2.) a “helmet” type device known as Oaze that can be worn for concentrated light treatments for both male and female hair loss patients.  The helmet shape has replaced the laser comb tool (also known as the laser hair brush) because of the head gear’s advantageous ability to maintain constant contact with treatment area whereas the older comb technology required constant brushing for extended amounts of time.

At The Griffin Center, LLLT treatment is currently used to help encourage successful growth of new follicular unit grafts in post-hair transplant surgery patients.  Because hair transplant surgery results depend solely on the survival of the transplanted hair follicles in their new scalp location, LLLT is applied to increase circulation and metabolic activity amongst the hairs so that they can more easily acclimate to their new location; and trauma from the act of transplantation is minimized. Additionally, because medications like finasteride and minoxidil are traditionally seen as more of a hair preservation and hair loss prevention method, Dr. Edmond Griffin also thinks a non-surgical hair restoration method like LLLT could be useful in patients’ treatment regimes that’ve already experienced hair loss.

To learn more about the hair restoration options available at The Griffin Center, visit their website and continue to read our blog.  For regular, up-to-date hair restoration treatment news, be sure to connect with them on Facebook and Twitter.