Biolux Hair loss Clinical Trial

Do you currently have ongoing hair loss or hair thinning?  Many patients come to us and at times can be frustrated with the multiple medical treatments available, such as minoxidil and finasteride.   Although these treatments can retard the rate of hair loss or thinning, some patients may not necessarily notice increased hair density and regrowth.  Other options include cosmetic cover ups; however, these can be frustrating to use as well. 

Our patients often ask, “What else can we do?”  “Are there any other options?”  For those patients that choose not to undergo surgical treatment, alternative treatments may be limited.  However, if you have attempted to treat your hair loss and have not achieved the desired results, there are now safe alternatives available.   

We are currently enrolling patients in a study to test the safety and efficacy of a new device used to stimulate hair growth.  It utilizes low-level-laser light therapy through an LED light source to stimulate hair growth.  It is called the Biolux laser hair brush.   As we previously blogged about (on dravram.com), our office performed a similar study on the HairMax LaserComb, which also used low-level-light therapy to stimulate hair growth.  It was recently FDA approved and found to be safe for use.  The Biolux laser hair brush works very similarly to the HairMax LaserComb; however, utilizes different wavelengths for possible greater efficacy. 

If you are interested in finding out more information and possibly enrolling in this study, you can click here and fill out the survey.

Information is also posted on our office website: www.dravram.com.

Advances in the Cure for Baldness: the Vitamin D Receptor

Recently an article in the Wall Street Journal (http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10000872396390443921504577643442954317340.html?mod=googlenews_wsj) was published describing research performed by several different teams of scientists, regarding the role of Vitamin D and its receptor in hair loss.

My mentor, Dr.  Marc Avram, recently commented on the subject on the Today Show: http://todamy.msnbc.msn.com/id/26184891/vp/49001161#49001161

So what are the facts? 

Can taking vitamin D supplements cure balding?

The answer is probably no.  The research performed on the subject does not support that Vitamin D supplementation alone will lead to hair growth.  The receptor that vitamin D acts on is likely more important to regulating hair cycling and growth than vitamin D itself. 

The vitamin D receptor can be thought of as the lock and vitamin D can be thought of as a key that fits into the lock.  Research has shown that there are many different molecules besides vitamin D that can act as keys to the vitamin D receptor’s lock.  Some of these molecules, such as MED1 and LEF-1, were recently described by researchers at Harvard Medical School and the University of California San Francisco as being critical to hair growth. 

These molecules, such as vitamin D, that bind to the vitamin D receptor are called ligands.  When they bind to the vitamin D receptor, they lead to activation of the receptor, which leads to regulation of various genes that control hair cycling and growth.  Although, according to a July 2012 report by Dr. Haussler from the University of Arizona, the vitamin D receptor can be activated without being bound by a ligand. 

Interestingly, although the actual vitamin D receptor and not necessarily vitamin D alone, seems to play a bigger role in hair growth regulation, a recent study by Dr. Yoshimura from the University of Tokyo, suggests that vitamin D may also stimulate hair growth.  They used cells taken from mouse skin, and pretreated them with vitamin D.  When the cells were transplanted back into the mouse and induced to form hair, they found that the addition of vitamin D enhanced hair follicle growth.

This is a promising finding that could potentially be useful in the future, when cloning hair for its use in hair transplantation.

So have scientists discovered the cure for baldness?  The answer is not yet.  The recent discoveries about the Vitamin D receptor’s influence on hair growth is just a small piece of this very complex puzzle.

Intro

Hi all!!!

I just created this blog for patients, friends, and the general public.  I get asked questions on skin and hair constantly.  So, I thought I would start blogging about these general "hot topics".

Hope you find this helpful, as well as, educational!

Dr. Meena Singh