Its all interlinked

The Biological Effects of a Pulsed Electrostatic Field with Specific Reference to Hair - ElectroTrichoGenesis
W. Stuart Maddin, M.D., F.R.C.P.(C), Peter W. Bell, B.Sc. (Pharm.), M.B.A., and John H.M. James, M.D., C.C.F.P.C. - Division of Dermatology, University of British Columbia School of Medicine, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada



This comparative, controlled study demonstrates the positive biological effect on hair regrowth of a pulsed electrical field administered according to a regularized treatment schedule over 36 weeks. Mean hair count comparisons within the groups significantly favor the treatment group, which exhibited a 66.1% hair count increase over baseline. The control group increase over baseline was 25.6%. It is notable also that 29 of the 30 treatment subjects (96.7%) exhibited regrowth or no further hair loss. The process is without side effects and untoward reactions. The rationale of this phenomenon is unclear but is considered to be due to an eletrophysiologic effect on the quiescent hair follicle, similar to that documented with respect to bone fracture and soft tissue repair enhancement. The electrical pulse may cause increased cell mitosis through calcium influx, involving both the hair follicle sheath and dermal papilla cells. For more than 30 years the relationship between electrical effects and the growth of mammalian tissue has been a subject of interest and conjecture. Starting with studies of electrical signals arising from nonexcitable tissues, exogenous signals have been applied to cellular and animal models to determine biologic response, and electrical stimulation has been used clinically to enhance hard and soft tissue repair.1 This study presents data on a hair regrowth method utilizing the proximal application to the scalp of a pulsed electrical field. Previously, Gunn and Lee2 reported an experiment involving four men with early hair loss being treated with a commercially available transcutaneous electrical neural stimulation (TENS) device, resulting in a reduction of shedding, an improvement in hair texture, and a gradual resumption in growth rate. Also, in two open, uncontrolled trials involving 25 and 40 subjects, respectively, Bell3 reported that 84% of the former group and 70% of the latter showed regrowth after 60 days, utilizing the electrical modality being tested in this study. Disciplines within the medical profession are familiar with the use of electrical modalities in a variety of circumstances, but the suggestion of electricity stimulating hair growth or regrowth has not been properly investigated. The use of certain frequency and current values in a specified treatment regimen may meet the need for an effective, new form of treatment of a troublesome cosmetic condition, androgenic alopecia, to which increased attention has been paid in recent years. The terminology "electrotrichogenesis" (ETG) aptly and conventionally describes the phenomenon.