BJD 19064
BJD 19064
BJD 19064
The authors did not receive any funding for this research.
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through the copyediting, typesetting, pagination and proofreading process, which may lead to
differences between this version and the Version of Record. Please cite this article as doi:
10.1111/BJD.19064
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Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a promising treatment for androgenetic alopecia (AGA), but is not efficacious in
Accepted Article
all patients. Dynamic, quantitative trichoscopy can longitudinally follow hair regrowth during and after
treatment,1-4 thus characterizing clinical response to PRP as continued, non-productive treatment sessions
may lead to large patient burden. To appropriately counsel patients on adjuvant PRP treatment success,
clinical results must be accurately described. The objective of this study is to determine if AGA patient
response to adjuvant PRP can be stratified based on quantitative hair counts after two treatment sessions.
This retrospective review was approved by the New York University School of Medicine Institutional
Review Board. AGA patients who received adjuvant PRP therapy (RegenKit-BCT-1, RegenLab USA, New York,
NY) as part of their treatment regimen at a single, tertiary, academic medical center from January 2012 to
May 2019 were identified. PRP was prepared after venipuncture of 8 or 16 mL of blood, followed by
centrifugation (5 minutes, 1500 g), resulting in 5 or 10 mL, respectively, of supernatant with 1.6-fold
increased platelet concentration. Intradermal scalp injections (0.1 mL, 1 cm apart) were directed to clinically
affected areas. Trichologic assessment of hair density and hair shaft diameter was obtained using the
Folliscope (Anagen Corp, Seoul, South Korea); the location of baseline measurement was recorded, and all
follow-up measurements were taken in the same area. After two PRP sessions completed at four to six-week
intervals, patients were assessed for clinical response, defined as an increase in hair density by 10 hairs/cm2
from baseline. If patients were “PRP-responders” they received a further four monthly PRP sessions and
maintenance injections every three to six months.4 Statistical analyses of trichoscopic measurements were
completed using unequal t-tests.
104 (17.7%) of 588 identified AGA patients received adjuvant PRP. Most patients were female (71.2%,
n=74); the mean age was 46.0 ± 16.9 years. 93.3% (n=97) of patients were using other AGA-directed therapies
prior to initiating PRP including 79.4% (n=77) topical minoxidil, 61.9% (n=60) oral 5α-reductase inhibitor
(finasteride/dutasteride), and 42.3% (n=41) each oral minoxidil or spironolactone, amongst others. Of these
97 patients, 17 only had one PRP treatment and could not be evaluated for response; three patients with
concomitant scarring alopecia did not have trichologic measurements.
A positive response to adjuvant PRP was reported in 70.1% (54/77) of patients after two sessions.
After two PRP treatments, mean change in hair density from baseline demonstrates a significant 21.2±12.3%
increase in “PRP-responder” hair density versus a -2.5±6.2% decrease in “PRP-non-responders” (p < 0.0001)
(Figure 1). Of PRP-responders, 14.8% (n=8) demonstrated < 10% increase in hair density over baseline, 42.6%
(n=23) a 10-19.9% increase, 20.3% (n=11) a 20-29.9% increase, 16.7% (n=9) a 30-39.9% increase, 3.7% (n=2) a
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