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Botox for Hair Loss??? Tell me more...
Get ready for a blog post all about botulinum toxin (also known as Botox)...I knew it could reduce the appearance of facial wrinkles... But since writing this post I have also learned it has tons of other uses like treating neck spasms, excessive sweating, overactive bladder, plus tons more.
I also found a few studies using Botox as a treatment for androgenic alopecia. Now you know on this blog we love all things anti hair loss. If you'd like to check out more hair loss treatments then check out some of my blog posts linked HERE.
I've also linked some of the products I have used personally and/or reviewed in my blog posts below.
If you're battling with androgenic alopecia then you've probably heard about Minoxidil and Finasteride. To date these are the only agents approved by the Federal Drug Administration (FDA) and European Medicines Agency (EMEA) for treatment of androgenic alopecia: Oral finasteride (for men) and topical minoxidil (for women and men) (1).
But let's face it...These two options don't work great for everyone. Both come with their own set of side effects and different people experience different levels of efficacy with these agents. Thus the search continues to identify alternative treatment options.
But before you inject a bunch of botox units into your scalp I want you to know that these were small studies. All of the journal articles that I've found on this topic so far were conducted in men and no control group was used.
Here's what I'm serving up in this post:
What is Botox
Mechanism baby...How is Botox thought to work as a treatment for androgenic alopecia?
Talk data to me...A look at some of the results from the studies using Botox for hair loss
Things to consider regarding botox for hair loss
Some Hair Loss Treatments That Have Been Reviewed On This Blog
What Is Botox??
Botulinum toxins are protein neurotoxins produced by Clostridium bacteria (2).
Botulinum toxins trigger respiratory and musculoskeletal paralysis by inhibiting the action of neurotransmitters (2).
And these effects are dose dependent. So when you increase the dose, the effect is more pronounced.
Botox for Hair Loss: Let's talk mechanism...
Recently, investigators have begun conducting clinical trials on Botox as an intervention for androgenic alopecia.
I know what you're thinking...But doesn't the evidence strongly implicate DHT in the pathogenesis of Androgenic alopecia...?
Yes it does. But there may be other factors that contribute in accelerating hair loss. For example, investigators often report that certain muscles in the scalp of androgenic alopecia-affected males are chronically and involuntarily contracted (3).
When chronically contracted, these muscles may pinch vascular networks that indirectly supply blood and oxygen to androgenic alopecia prone tissues (3).
Now we know Botox causes musculoskeletal paralysis so it makes sense to me that there would be an interest in using this treatment to reduce the contraction of scalp muscles in individuals with androgenic alopecia.
Treatment with Botox would then involve intradermal and/or intramuscular injections with botulinum toxin.
Some other products that I've written posts about that may also impact blood flow to androgenic alopecia tissues in addition to Botox are linked below.
You can learn more about these treatments HERE.
Talk Data To Me...
Let's take a look at some of the studies assessing Botox and its efficacy in androgenic alopecia. I've pulled some of the results that I thought were important. But you can stalk the study yourself HERE.
In this study conducted by Singh et al. injections were performed with 150 units botulinum toxin type A into the frontalis, temporalis, periauricular, and occipitalis muscles, equally divided over 30 injections sites, in ten men with androgenic alopecia (4). The study duration was 24 weeks.
The ten men had androgenic alopecia classifications of Norwood II-IV. If you are not familiar with the Norwood Classification of patterned hair loss then check out the images HERE.
The men in this study also had no history of hair loss treatments in the last 6 months.
Results: The response was assessed by both photographic assessment and subject self-assessment. According to photographic assessment, 8 (80%) subjects were determined as displaying an excellent response to the treatment, 1 (10%) subject as fair, and 1 (10%) subject as poor.
Self-assessment Results: 7 (70%) subjects described themselves as displaying a good-to-excellent response, 2 (20%) subjects graded themselves as having a fair response, and 1 (10%) subject graded his response as poor.
No side effects were reported in this study.
Talk Data To Me...
In 2010 a pilot study was conducted by Freund et al which investigated the effects of intramuscular Botox injections on 50 men with androgenic alopecia (40 men completed the study).
Their Norwood classifications were from II-IV and with no history of hair loss treatments in the last year.
The men received 150 units of botulinum toxin type A injected intramuscularly into the frontalis, temporalis, periauricular, and occipitalis muscles in 2 total sessions spread 5 months apart. Doses were divided equally over 30 injection sites.
From baseline to study completion (i.e., 48 weeks), hair density within a 2-cm fixed area increased by an average of 18% (p < 0.0001).
The overall response rate, defined by investigators as participants who achieved hair count changes >0%, was determined to be 75%. No side effects were reported.
Want more? Check out the prospective study HERE.
Want more, still? Stalk this study HERE.
Even more? You fiend. But go on...Stalk the study HERE.
Botox for Hair Loss: Things You May Want To Consider...
When taking a look at these studies using Botox as a treatment all of the outcomes seemed favorable. But I think we need more data before we draw any real conclusions from these results
These studies did not have control groups. So when people are doing self-assesments on their hair or even when investigators are assessing hair counts their may be a bias or even the placebo-effect may come into play
None of these studies compared Botox treatment injection against FDA-approved treatments for androgenic alopecia, such as oral finasteride or topical minoxidil.
The number of participants in these studies was very low, and they were all males
These studies varied in their duration and their treatment methodologies
Age may also be an important factor when using Botox as a treatment for androgenic alopecia because younger individuals often have stronger muscles, and may require higher doses of Botox to achieve adequate muscle relaxation (5). So the dosing regimen may need to be adjusted based on age as opposed to one set unit number being used as a treatment for everyone.
For more posts about concealing hair loss check out my blog posts linked HERE.
For more about what I use to treat my hair loss check out my e-Book linked HERE.
Thank you for reading and don't forget to subscribe to make sure you never miss a post!
XOXO
-Riley
References:
1. Fischer TW. Alopecia - Diagnostic and Therapeutic Management. Akt Dermatol. 2008;34:209–25.
2. Dutta SR, Passi D, Singh M, Singh P, Sharma S, Sharma A. Botulinum toxin the poison that heals: a brief review. Natl J Maxillofac Surg. 2016 Jan‒Jun;7(1):10–6.
3. Goldman BE, Fisher DM, Ringler SL. Transcutaneous PO2 of the scalp in male pattern baldness: a new piece to the puzzle. Plast Reconstr Surg. 1996 May;97(6):1109–17; discussion 17.
4. Singh S, Neema S, Vasudevan B. A Pilot Study to Evaluate Effectiveness of Botulinum Toxin in Treatment of Androgenetic Alopecia in Males. J Cutan Aesthet Surg. 2017;10(3):163-167. doi:10.4103/JCAS.JCAS_77_17
5. Dover JS, Monheit G, Greener M, Pickett A. Botulinum toxin in aesthetic medicine: myths and realities. Dermatol Surg. 2018 Feb;44(2):249–60.
6. Freund BJ, Schwartz M. Treatment of male pattern baldness with botulinum toxin: a pilot study. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2010 Nov;126(5):246e–8e.