Discover the best potential solutions for your hair loss by having a medical consultation at Root Hair Institute to discuss what treatment options may be best for you.
Dealing with hair loss can be difficult. It affects many people’s confidence, self identity, social interactions, relationships, and in some cases even professional performance. Fortunately, there are many treatment options to help decrease further loss, thicken existing hair, and regrow hair.
Root Hair Institute is a comprehensive hair restoration center that offers multiple treatments for hair loss including both surgical and non-surgical options. Non-surgical treatment options include both topical medications (a topical solution or foam is applied on top of the scalp in areas of loss) and oral medications (a pill is taken by mouth).
Our doctors offer comprehensive treatments including medical therapies and customized treatment plans to help you achieve your long-term goals. They will educate you on multiple options so that you can determine what options fit your lifestyle and priorities. They help patients to regain control of their hair and regain their confidence.
Medical therapy can be an effective treatment option for hair loss. By offering and combining different types of hair loss medications and therapies, our doctors are able to effectively treat multiple types and causes of hair loss in many cases.
Your medical treatment therapy starts with a thorough assessment from our hair restoration physicians.
They will consult with you on your history, carry out a thorough examination of your scalp and hair follicles including dermatoscopic exam, and discuss your concerns and overall goals.
In some cases additional testing such as scalp biopsy or laboratory blood tests may be recommended depending on your case.
After confirming your diagnosis, your physician will start planning a personalized hair restoration program that fits your long-term goals and lifestyle. They will discuss the risks, benefits, and alternatives of different therapies.
If you are open to being on multiple types of therapies, they will often recommend a multi-pronged approach where your physician will combine different therapies that act on the hair loss in different ways to obtain the best possible results. If you prefer to start one type of therapy, then they will schedule you back for a follow up visit so that your response to that therapy can be determined and additional therapies can be added or the therapy can be changed if needed.
Medical therapies do not work overnight. Many times, hair loss medical therapy takes at least 3-6 months, or longer, to take effect. However, there may be cases when your physician may advise you to combine your medical therapy with other hair restoration procedures to further improve the health of your hair follicles or help fill in thinning or balding areas.
Talk to our hair restoration doctors at Root Hair Institute if you are interested in discussing what medical therapy or other treatment options may be right for you.
Medical therapy for hair loss is a non-surgical treatment option that offers patients a way to potentially minimize further progression of hair loss, thicken existing hair, and in some cases regrow hair. What are the advantages of this type of therapy?
Medical hair restoration aims to significantly reduce hair loss and stabilize your hair follicles. It is important to stay on these treatments long-term so that the positive effects can be retained.
Oral and topical therapies are available for convenient at-home use. While the treatment's effect may need months to visibly take effect, you can start your hair restoration journey often without significant changes to your daily routine. Medical therapies do not require frequent office visits such as other treatment options like growth factor injections.
With the availability of generic versions of many oral and topical hair loss medications, patients often have a variety of relatively affordable options to start their hair restoration journey.
You can potentially restore your hair with oral and topical treatments depending on what your hair requires and your lifestyle, preferences, and medical history.
There are several oral treatments for hair loss ranging from prescription agents to over-the-counter supplements. The exact types of oral therapies that are recommended depend on the type of hair loss you have among other factors.
Finasteride and dutasteride are prescription medications.
Finasteride is a type II 5-alpha reductase inhibitor that blocks the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (which is the form of testosterone that contributes to patterned hair loss). Finasteride is FDA-approved for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia in men (aka male-patterned hair loss or balding). Its use in other groups of people including post-menopausal women is off label. It can slow down the rate of hair loss and may even facilitate new growth in many individuals.
Dutasteride is a type I and type II 5-alpha reductase inhibitor that also blocks the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). It is FDA-approved for benign prostatic hyperplasia. Its use for any type of hair loss is off label.
These medications can take time to start producing results. It often takes 3-6 months to start to see a result, and it can take years in some cases to see the full result. These medications are often avoided in people with childbearing potential such as pre-menopausal women given the risk of birth defects. These medications have potential benefits but also have potential side effects. It is important to discuss the risks, benefits, and alternatives with your doctor.
Oral spironolactone is FDA-approved for a number of scenarios for conditions such as heart disease and high blood pressure. Its use for any form of hair loss including androgenetic alopecia in women/female pattern hair loss is off label. The reason it is sometimes used off-label for the treatment of female pattern hair loss is that it decreases androgen activity. This medication can cause birth defects if taken while pregnant. It is important to discuss the risks, benefits, and alternatives of this medication with your doctor to determine if this could be an appropriate option for you.
Oral minoxidil is FDA-approved for the treatment of high blood pressure. Its use for the treatment of any form of hair loss is off label. Lower doses have been described for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia/patterned hair loss and other forms of hair loss, but further study of this treatment is still needed. If you are considering starting this medication, make sure to first discuss its risks, benefits, and alternatives with your doctor.
There are other potential treatment options especially for inflammatory types of hair loss. In inflammatory types of hair loss, oral prescriptions targeted at decreasing inflammation can be helpful to reduce the inflammation at the level of the hair follicle to minimize future loss and avoid irreversible damage such as scarring and permanent loss of the hair follicle.
It is important to see someone who specializes in hair loss and is familiar with the level of evidence of these medications so that they can discuss the efficacy, safety, and appropriateness for your individual case. Many of these agents can also be formulated as topical agents for those who want to avoid any oral agents (see below).
There are many topical agents, including but not limited to topicals with the medications listed above, for different types of hair loss. These agents are often formulated as a solution, foam, or oil to allow easy application onto the scalp.
A topical hair loss treatment can be an excellent option for patients who do not want to be on oral medications for their hair loss.
The only topical medication FDA-approved for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia/patterned hair loss is over the counter minoxidil solution or foam. Other options such as topical finasteride, dutasteride, spironolactone, prescription-strength minoxidil, tretinoin, latonoprost, and bimatoprost are not FDA-approved for the treatment of hair loss. One option with prescription-strength topicals is to compound multiple ingredients into one (see below).
Topical compounded therapy allows a combination of multiple active ingredients into one product to allow a multi-pronged approach to hair loss with straightforward application of a single product. This is often done with a topical compounded prescription.
It is important to see someone who regularly prescribes these medications, such as our doctors at Root Hair Institute, so that they know what ingredients to use for your case, what ingredients to combine, what concentration to use, and what formulation to use.
One thing to remember is that topical medication will only work if you apply it! If you are not likely to consistently use the product on your scalp at least once daily, consider other treatment options.
It is also essential to understand how to apply topical agents properly. Ensure that when applying these agents, you are parting the hair in multiple areas, applying the product, and then using your fingers to massage the product into the scalp.
The hair shaft itself is made of a protein called keratin. The living cells in the hair follicles that make the hair are located beneath the scalp, so any topical treatment must make contact with the scalp to be able to penetrate to these cells.
This allows effectiveness at the level of the hair follicle to potentially decrease shedding and increase growth.
Topical agents can be combined with other treatments such as microneedling to increase delivery to the level of the follicle or with other treatments such as oral medications, red light therapy, growth factor injections, and/or surgery; however, it is essential to discuss these options with an experienced hair restoration physician.
Book a consultation with our hair restoration physicians to learn more about these non-surgical treatment options at Root Hair Institute.
Many patients choose to undergo medical therapy as it can be an evidence-based, convenient, and cost-effective way to start their hair restoration process. Medications can also be combined with other types of therapy.
Medical therapy may allow you to regain your hair without the need for procedures. These oral and topical treatments can be used at home as part of your daily routine.
There are FDA-approved options such as finasteride by mouth for male pattern hair loss and topical over-the-counter minoxidil in men and women for patterned hair loss. There are other potential treatment options that have been studied but remain off label. It is important to discuss these potential options with your doctor.
Our team at RHI is dedicated to debunking myths and misconceptions and to educating patients on their treatment options. Our doctors’ approach to treating hair loss is evidence-based and transparent, so that our patients are well-informed and confident and comfortable with their hair restoration plan.
The cost of medical work up and medications varies based on what is recommended in your case. This includes if any further work up such as scalp biopsy or labs are recommended and what medications or other treatments are recommended if any. To find out the cost for a consultation for your case, call us. During your consultation your need for further work up and potential treatment plan will be further discussed and you will get a better idea of these potential costs.
Root Hair Institute is a reliable partner for your hair loss medical treatment. We provide a thorough approach to hair loss and are able to provide treatment for all types of hair loss regardless of severity. Our team is led by the best hair restoration physicians in Greater Seattle.
We are proud to have the best hair restoration physicians in Greater Seattle. Our top-notch hair restoration surgeons and board-certified dermatologist specialize in administering effective and safe medical therapies for patients in the Greater Seattle area.
Hair loss can be a warning sign of an underlying condition. Before we jump into treatment recommendations, our doctors thoroughly assess your scalp and hair and first make an accurate diagnosis. They determine if any further work up is needed and then make a personalized treatment plan for you.
Root Hair Institute provides a wide array of hair restoration treatments. Aside from providing the best hair loss medical therapies, our hair restoration surgeons and dermatologists are able to provide you with other options including red light therapy, growth factor injections, scalp micropigmentation, and hair restoration surgery.
Medical Therapies
Hair Restoration Surgery
Beard Restoration Surgery
Eyebrow Restoration Surgery
Scalp Injections
Scalp Microneedling
Low-Level Light Therapy
Scalp Micro-pigmentation
