Microneedling for Hair Growth
September 21 2020
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Written By Catherine Wilson
September 21 2020
·
Written By Catherine Wilson
Microneedling can be used on the face, body and scalp. A wheel with hundreds of tiny needles of 0.2 - 2mm is rolled over the skin, creating microscopic channels in the epidermis (the upper layer of the skin). When rolled over a layer of serum or treatment product, the active molecules in the product are literally pushed deeper into the skin.
Microneedling is often used on the scalp, to help enhance hair growth. Its mechanism of action includes kick starting the wound healing process of the scalp. This helps to promote collagen formation, which forms stronger hair follicles which hold onto hair for longer periods of time, minimising hair loss. It also increases blood supply which can support hair growth by delivering vital nutrients to the scalp.
Microneedling therapy has been shown to dramatically increase the bioavailability of topical treatments, by increasing their penetration through the skin. [1] This has the potential to make topical treatments such as Hair Growth Factor Treatment Serum even more effective and reduce the dosage needed. One study compared the efficacy of Minoxidil treatment with and without microneedling therapy on 100 androgenetic alopecia patients over the course of 12 weeks. [2] 82% of the group using Minoxidil in combination with microneedling reported more than 50% improvement, compared with just 4.5% of the group using Minoxidil alone.
[1] Verbaan, F., et al., Assembled microneedle arrays enhance the transport of compounds varying over a large range of molecular weight across human dermatomed skin, Journal of Controlled Release, 2007, 117(2), 238-245.
[2] R. Dhurat et al, A Randomized Evaluator Blinded Study of Effect of Microneedling in Androgenetic Alopecia: A Pilot Study, Int J Trichology, 2013, 5(1), 6–11.