Hair Mesotherapy, and the Question You Should Ask First

A technique in which small amounts of a solution are injected into the superficial layers of the scalp across the thinning area, using very fine needles. The term describes the delivery method — many small injections into the mesoderm — rather than a specific medicine.

This is the important question, and the answer varies between clinics. Preparations typically contain combinations of vitamins, minerals, amino acids and other agents. There is no single standardised formulation, which is why claims made about mesotherapy are so inconsistent from one place to another. You are entitled to be told exactly what is being injected into you, and you should ask.

The evidence is limited, and weaker than for the established medical treatments for pattern hair loss. Because formulations differ, evidence about one preparation does not necessarily transfer to another. We are willing to offer it as a supportive treatment alongside proven ones, and we are not willing to present it as a primary treatment for pattern hair loss.

PRP and GFC use your own blood, and PRP in particular has a considerably more developed evidence base. Mesotherapy injects an externally prepared solution. If you are choosing between them, that difference in evidence maturity is a reasonable thing to weigh, and it is discussed at assessment.

No. Where pattern hair loss is the diagnosis, the established medical treatments are the backbone of the plan. Mesotherapy is at most an addition to that, and it is not a way of avoiding a treatment that has actually been shown to work.

It is given as a course, with sessions spaced some weeks apart and the response assessed with photographs. The number depends on your diagnosis and how you respond. A fixed package sold before an examination is a commercial arrangement rather than a treatment plan.

The needles are very fine and the injections are superficial, so most people find it uncomfortable rather than painful. Some tenderness afterwards is normal and settles quickly.

Temporary tenderness, redness, small bumps at injection sites and occasional bruising are the usual ones and settle within days. Less commonly, reactions to a component of the injected preparation can occur, which is another reason to know precisely what is being used. Infection is uncommon but possible with any injection.

It is not appropriate where there is active scalp infection or inflammation, where there is a known allergy to a component of the preparation, in certain clotting disorders or on some medications affecting clotting, and it is assessed individually in pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Reduced shedding, where it happens, is usually the earliest sign. Any change in density is assessed over months against baseline photographs rather than from week to week. Some people notice no change at all, and that possibility is part of the conversation before you start.

No. Iron deficiency, thyroid disease, hormonal causes and several other conditions cause hair loss and improve when the condition is treated. Injecting a scalp while the actual cause runs untreated is money spent on the wrong problem. The assessment exists to prevent exactly that.

It is generally used that way rather than alone — alongside medical treatment, and sometimes with other supportive treatments. The plan is designed as a whole.

No. It does not alter the underlying process behind pattern hair loss, so any benefit requires maintenance and the underlying treatment continues regardless.

It is priced per session and depends on the course planned, so it is quoted after assessment. If the assessment points to a treatment with better evidence behind it, that is what will be recommended. See cost and payment options.