A 360 Approach to Treating Hair LossA 360 Approach to Treating Hair Loss

Jessica Barry

The range of hair restoration treatments and solutions is as dynamic as the patient population it serves, thus physicians must build a comprehensive armamentarium to meet each patients’ unique treatment goals. Understanding this need, Vision Medical, Inc. and sister company Smart Solutions RX (Glen Mills, Pa.) offer devices and products that treat hair loss using a global, 360° approach.

When a patient wants surgery, Melissa Morrison Toyos, MD, an ophthalmologist and aesthetic medicine expert with six clinics across Tenn., Miss. and N.Y., turns to SmartGraft. This hair transplant device (Vision Medical, Inc.), uses follicular unit extraction (FUE) to redistribute living hair from a donor area to a balding or thinning area of the scalp.

“The company has taken all the advantages of the prior FUE systems and made a more efficient device,” Dr. Toyos explained. “I can do 3,000 grafts in one day because SmartGraft has a refrigerated compartment that showers the grafts with moisture, so I do not have to stop the procedure and do it myself.”

While it often takes one to two years for patients to see maximum results, Dr. Toyos finds satisfaction in being able to treat hair transplant patients so efficiently. “I come from ophthalmology where I can do cataract surgery and make an immediate difference in a patient’s life,” she shared. “SmartGraft has allowed me to have a very similar experience in my hair restoration practice.”

Maximizing the benefits of hair transplantation means pre- and post-surgical protocols are also necessary, according to Dr. Toyos. “You would not put in a $10,000 lawn and never fertilize it,” she said. “It is the same with hair transplantation, which is why, even if someone wants surgery, I still like to use medical and non-invasive treatments.”

When treating his hair loss patients, Cesar Aristeiguieta, MD, founder of ILEA Hair Restoration (Houston, Texas), will often start with the least invasive treatment option first, and go from there.

“We use FDA-approved medications as the foundation for hair loss treatment, but many of our patients prefer more natural approaches” he added. “In those cases, I find that LOCKrx supplements and microneedling treatments can provide benefits, as can other stimulating treatments like laser caps and platelet-rich plasma (PRP).”

The LOCKrx Hair Support program from Smart Solutions RX includes supplements that target gut health as well as at-home and in-clinic topical treatments that create an optimal environment for hair growth.

More recently, Smart Solutions RX has developed SMART eXo, a topical made up of 100 billion acellular, non-expanded sterile extracellular vesicles that carry miRNA identified specifically for their role in hair restoration.

“I have had an opportunity to play with SMART eXo in my practice,” shared Dr. Toyos. “For example, we showered the grafts we harvested during a few hair restoration procedures with SMART eXo. Although anecdotal, it seems to make a difference in terms of patient recovery and might even accelerate regrowth.”

Finally, Vision Medical, Inc. and Smart Solutions RX provide a level of service to physicians that other, larger companies do not. “The relationship that I have with these companies are unique,” Dr. Aristeiguieta mentioned. “I know everybody from the owner to the office staff, which means I can pick up the phone and call the right person to help me with any given issue.”