Laser Hair Treatment for Baldness

Hair loss, whether it takes place in the young or the old, men or women, has long been a condition that medicine has tried to heal. As technology has improved, so have the methods that doctors have available to them. Lasers, which have already been applied to a slew of other problems from tattoo removal to eye care, are now being used to encourage hair to grow back thick and healthy, without surgery.

Process

• The process for hair re-growth and stimulation is the same for every patient, regardless of age or gender. Low level, "cool" lasers (which have no thermal components, and therefore won't cut or damage tissues) are used on the patient's scalp. Most often the laser is contained in an apparatus that is not unlike an old hair drying hood, which makes certain that only the scalp of the patient is affected.

Stimulation

• The lasers encourage natural body processes to take place in the patient's scalp. The lasers stimulate the flow and supply of red blood cells, and by association oxygen, to the scalp area. This creates an environment where hair is more inclined to grow naturally. This is done by "waking up" cells which have gone dormant and stopped producing hair, but which still have the capacity to do so.

Factors

• While laser hair treatment often succeeds at helping people stimulate their natural hair growth, there are some factors that will determine how successful laser treatment can be for a given patient. Those who seek treatment soon after their hair loss begins have a better chance of re-growing hair than those who wait, for instance. Additionally, how well the patient's body responds to the lasers, and how closely they follow their treatment plan, can determine how effective the therapy is.

Existing Hair

• Laser hair treatments can also improve a person's existing hair. Changes such as healthier, stronger, shinier hair are common, due to the stimulation of the entire scalp. Changes such as these are usually noticeable within the first few weeks of a person's treatment beginning.

Complete Baldness

• Laser hair treatments will not work on individuals who have gone completely bald. Since the effect is achieved by stimulating existing hair roots, there must be existing roots for the treatment to effect. So, if a person is completely bald, and therefore their hair roots have died and not simply gone dormant, laser hair treatments won't achieve any sort of effect on that person.