My Hair Continues to Thin, So Should I Try Microneedling?
Hello Doctor
Thank You for your time and effort spent on Balding Blog, it is very informative, I check it daily. I am a 51 yr old male that has had several transplants over the years. I currently use Finasteride and Rogaine daily. I have continued to thin in spite of making every effort, which is extremely stressful. I was interested in Microneedling. Is this something that one may do at home or does this require a visit to the doctors office. I live on the east coast just out side of Boson Ma. I would like to learn more about the treatment.Thanks very much!
No doubt that my posting about the small microneedling trial piqued your interest. Unfortunately, I have little experience with the technique you asked about.
You can contact doctors in the Boston area and see if someone has experience with it. To find a doctor in your area, check out the physician search at ISHRS.org.
Why not bring the study to a tattoo parlor along with a derma roller? They needle people all day and supposedly don’t infect them. I think if they can do a tattoo, then they can definitely do a derma roll.
Dermal rolling is definitely something you can do at home.
Go to EBAY and look for a 1.5mm microneedler or dermaroller, as this was the needle length used in the pubmed.com story that showed such excellent results.
It is a very simple procedure, however, caution must be taken or you run the risk of infection.
Be sure to disinfect the roller itself, which is easy enough to do by spraying a 70% isopropyl alcohol mist on it until it is shiny wet, then letting it dry.
Be sure to disinfect your scalp as well. A 70% isopropyl alcohol soaked pad rubbed on the area to be rolled should be sufficient.
You simply run the dermaroller 8 times left to right, 8 times up and down, and 8 times diagonally. The end-point you are looking for is as red a scalp as you can get without bleeding.
This will take a few practices to get right, and it can be uncomfortable, like having a moderate sunburn.
Dermarolling can be used in conjunction with topical Rogaine, but it does not have to be. The study, published in pubmed.com, used dermarolling once per week, with no Rogaine the day of the rolling, then continued on the 2x per day Rogaine schedule.
I use a dermaroller myself. I started with a 0.5mm roller, but found the needles too short to redden my scalp sufficiently. I switched to the 1.5mm, applying the 5% Rogaine foam immediately before rolling. I would roll every day with the 0.5mm roller, but now no more than twice per week with the 1.5.
I hope this helps.
As I have only done this for the past 5 days