Alma TED Ultrasound System Enhances Hair Loss Therapy Deliverability
Growth factors are substances produced by your cells (especially during maturation and healing) to stimulate the proliferation of cells in tissue. Amino acids are the building blocks of proteins like hair (your hair is 99% protein). These natural molecules are known to increase hair growth and are the basis for treating thinning hair with PRP and Exosomes. But since the scalp skin is a barrier to most topical therapies, how do we get growth factors to the target cells in the hair follicle?
Injections have been the common method for bypassing the scalp barrier with growth factors and amino acids. Micro-needling has also been tried with variable success. None of these are popular with patients due to the discomfort of needles in the scalp and the variability of the results. (We do not inject exosomes due to the FDA ban on unauthorized use outside of a medical study).1
A new device is now availabe to use ultrasound and pressure to get the growth factors to the hair cells in the scalp. The Alma TED system recently received FDA approval, and based on the promise of early studies, we will be offering these treatments as an alternative to PRP treatments.
Benefits of Alma TED:
- A comfortable patient experience, unlike other in-office treatments that involve trauma to the scalp
- Noticeable results in one treatment
- Patients will often experience noticeable results as early as 2 weeks
- Quick and Simple
- A quick 20-30 minute treatment session requiring no topical anesthetic
- FDA cleared Class 1 device
Of course, we will be tracking all our patient data closely to see how well it works for individual patients and how it compares to other treatments (most notably PRP). But if you have tried PRP and abandoned the treatment due to discomfort from injections or lack of efficacy, this treatment is a good option to consider. Low-level light therapy (PhotoBioModulation also stimulates growth factor production) and oral medications can all be used concurrently, so you do not need to stop your treatments.
These treatments have been documented to improve hair growth in post-chemotherapy hair loss patients, as well as patients with Alopecia areata and scarring alopecia.
If you or someone you love has experienced these difficult-to-treat forms of hair loss, the Alma TED holds promise and offers a bit of hope! Call today and let us answer your questions to see if this might be right for you!
References:
1)" There are currently no FDA-approved exosome products."
https://www.fda.gov/vaccines-blood-biologics/consumers-biologics/consumer-alert-regenerative-medicine-products-including-stem-cells-and-exosomes
2) Transdermal Drug Delivery (including Ultrasound-Assisted) https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6251463/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6637104/