# Men's Hair Loss > Hair Loss Treatments >  Lasercap

## kanyon

Hi there,

One of the most reputable hair surgeons in Australia is Russell Knudsen. I went for a consultation with him back in late 2003 when I was 21. He told me to get on Fin and then Regaine. I had a lot of faith in him and he was understanding and did not suggest anything too dramatic for me.

For those who don't know him, here's a bio:

"Dr Russell Knudsen is a highly experienced surgeon with well over 4000 hair transplant procedures performed over 24 years.  He is a full-time specialist in this field and internationally recognized for his contributions to hair restoration surgery.  He is an author in three current textbooks on hair transplantation and has had numerous scientific articles published.  He is past-President of both the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery and the Australasian Society of Hair Restoration Surgeons.

In 2000 he was awarded the prestigious Golden Follicle Award by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery for contributions to the field of hair restoration surgery."


I emailed him recently and he replied about my thinning hair. I thought that was also very kind, contacting me and providing advice without an appointment.

On his website he says 'Lasers have NOT been proven effective in treating genetic hairloss'. This is in line with everything I've heard about laser treatments.

However on his homepage he posted this on 20 May:

"There has been a lot of interest in low powered laser devices and their effect on hair loss. Recent research suggests that it has a stimulatory effect on hair follicles. This could be an effective secondary (i.e. additional) treatment for hair loss in patients who are balding or thinning. It certainly also may be effective in seasonal increased hair shedding (a moult).

However, the delivery system and amount of laser exposure is critical to the chances of success. A new device called the Lasercap,  applies 224 laser lights continuously to the scalp in the comfort of your own home. It uses rechargeable batteries, can be worn under a cap or hat and can be used at your convenience. Suggested dosage schedules is 15-30 minutes every second day.

The major advantage of this device, compared to hand held devices, is that the correct energy level is continuously applied to the scalp. Hand held laser devices only apply energy for a very short period of time if used to the manufacturers instructions."

Could this be worth using? I really do have faith in Dr Knudsen and if he endorses this there could be some merit to it.

----------


## RichardDawkins

Lasercap is the same like a tinfoil hat its Bullshit

----------


## KeepTheHair

LaserCRap

Lasers are scams.

----------


## BackwardsBalding

> Hi there,
> 
> One of the most reputable hair surgeons in Australia is Russell Knudsen. I went for a consultation with him back in late 2003 when I was 21. He told me to get on Fin and then Regaine. I had a lot of faith in him and he was understanding and did not suggest anything too dramatic for me.
> 
> For those who don't know him, here's a bio:
> 
> "Dr Russell Knudsen is a highly experienced surgeon with well over 4000 hair transplant procedures performed over 24 years.  He is a full-time specialist in this field and internationally recognized for his contributions to hair restoration surgery.  He is an author in three current textbooks on hair transplantation and has had numerous scientific articles published.  He is past-President of both the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery and the Australasian Society of Hair Restoration Surgeons.
> 
> In 2000 he was awarded the prestigious Golden Follicle Award by the International Society of Hair Restoration Surgery for contributions to the field of hair restoration surgery."
> ...


 
I know a women who took up this laser buisness and have seen her results. It wont grow a bald mans hair back but whatever hair you do have it will certainly make thicker and stronger looking.

----------


## RichardDawkins

Of course, like for example Dont masturbate and your hair comes back

----------


## kanyon

If it's not too expensive I would try it because I trust this particular doctor.

Whoa, just checked it's $3,000! I think I'll give it a miss.

----------


## Spex

IMHO laser treatment for hairloss is complete rubbish. i spent £4, 000 on a 2 year course of laser hood treatment - waste of money and time. :Mad:

----------


## RichardDawkins

£4, 000

Wow this is pretty pretty bad  :Mad:

----------


## HairyHair

&#163;4,000 is too expensive to spend on something that's not 100&#37; sure to work.
There's just too much products and I would give this a try if not for the high price and low guarantee.

----------


## Laserhead

I was scammed by this laser crap and I wasted money that I could have spent on my family. Why would so many people be on this forum if lasers really worked?

----------


## Alan Bauman, MD

The widely varied biological effects of low level laser therapy have been studied for decades and not only hair loss patients have been helped by this non-chemical, non-invasive technology.  There are thousands of clinical peer-reviewed papers, dozens of textbooks, medical societies, conferences and organizations and prominent research facilities (Harvard, MIT, etc.) and many clinical institutions in the U.S. and abroad where photomedicine devices, concepts and protocols are discussed, debated and used.

Laser therapy and Phototherapy have been successfully used for pain control, wound healing, fat-reduction, brain injuries/stroke, dentistry, skin rejuvenation, hair growth and more. There are several online communities dedicated specifically to laser therapy--some for physicians and some for patients.

However, unfortunately most people (including doctors) don't understand what laser therapy is likely to do before they start or recommend a laser regimen and most physicians are still unfamiliar with how to prescribe the right dose, ensure compliance or even effectively track their patients results. These same statements can be said also for other medical treatments, like minoxidil and finasteride, for example. 

I will be the first to tell you that laser therapy is NOT a miracle cure.
Like minoxidil, finasteride, etc., the effects of laser therapy can be subtle at first, because it works NOT to create new hair follicles, but to enhance the quality of hair that follicles produce. This cannot be overstated: density changes are NOT the main effect.  The best visual improvements with laser therapy are typically seen in areas which have a significant amount of miniaturized of hair. 

A completely bald area or receded hairline is simply not going to regrow from laser therapy. Generally, women with hair loss have large areas of miniaturization and thinning and tend to respond 'visually well' from laser therapy.  Men who have significant visible miniaturization can do well too.

By far, until only very recently, our best results over the past ten years have been with in-office devices, 100+ diodes, 650nm, 5mW continuous power, 30 minute treatments, at least three times per week.  This regimen is NOT easy for patients to be compliant with.

Small areas can be treated with weak at-home devices but it is difficult for patients to remain compliant--much like with minoxidil, and to treat large areas with the small numbers of diodes that you have to aim around the scalp.  Consider the analogy of trying to grow your lawn armed with a water bottle... it's the right technology, but the wrong delivery system. You had better be ready to make some serious investment in time. 

In my opinion, the portable LaserCap (finally) provides what appears to be a large enough dose of laser energy over a wide enough area in a device which is easy to use because it is cordless, rechargeable and fits under a hat. Patients are therefore more compliant than with the laser brushes or combs. This could be the reason we are seeing improvements in hair growth--not only on close inspection with a microscope and measurements with Cross-Section Bundle Trichometry (HairCheck), but also on standardized global photography. "Thicker, Fuller, Healthier" may sound like a 'weak' claim, but thicker hair does cover the scalp better!

The LaserCap contains 224 laser (non-LED) diodes at 5mw power each, at 65nm wavelength.  However, LaserCap is NOT a continuous dose... it has a factory-set 80% "duty cycle."  In laser terms, this mean that the LaserCap is not delivering energy 20% of the time.  Many physicians are not aware of this fact (as evidenced by some of the websites mentioned in this thread).  

Without getting into a huge discussion about dosage, it's clear that 224 laser diodes (even at 80% duty cycle) deliver 15 to 25 times more energy than the traditional hand-held units that contain 7, 9 or 12 diodes.  It also efficiently delivers the energy over a larger area of scalp because of the non-spot, divergent/unfocused beams it produces.  

Like minoxidil, finasteride and other medications, laser therapy will never replace what we as surgeons do using hair transplantation, but laser therapy CAN be used as a chemical-free and side-effect free part of a hair restoration regimen. Improvements occur for the first 6-12 months then plateau after that, depending on hair length. 

My main suggestion is to make sure you have your Hair Restoration Physician take standardized global photos and take careful cross-sectional bundle measurements. In my practice, we perform bundle trichometry every 90 days until a steady state is reached and global photos about every six months for our patients.  Hundreds of patients each year are medically-managed this way so they know (and we know) if their treatment regimen is working.

Skepticism amongst physicians and the general public is normal and natural, especially when the mechanisms are not widely taught or understood. My thanks goes out to Dr. Michael Hamblin PhD from the Wellman Center of Photomedicine (Harvard/MIT) for helping me more deeply understand the mechanisms of low level laser therapy.

----------


## kanyon

Well then. I would try it if it didn't cost so much. Sounds like it's worth a go and easy to use.

----------


## Less101

Aren't lasers have this specific amount of "energy" for it to work for whatever purpose it is intended to work? Maybe the current power isn't enough but when it goes up, it won't be safe to use anymore? I think this is why hair lasers aren't as effective as fin and min. Sure those two take a while for us to see results but at least in the long run we see some improvements and if we don't, we can always stop because it's not as expensive as these lasers.

I agree with kanyon, if it doesn't cost that much _maybe_ I'd give it a shot.

----------


## Infarouge

Lasercap is working great for me.
I don't expect miracles, but so far (6 months) it has improved my hair more than prophecia .5mg did. I have photos maybe I'll post at 1 year.

IMO hairloss it's a uphill battle... anything that can slow it down is great.
Also anything that can help keep prophecia dose lower will basically allow it to work longer before your body says "oh yea?"

----------


## StayThick

> Lasercap is working great for me.
> I don't expect miracles, but so far (6 months) it has improved my hair more than prophecia .5mg did. I have photos maybe I'll post at 1 year.
> 
> IMO hairloss it's a uphill battle... anything that can slow it down is great.
> Also anything that can help keep prophecia dose lower will basically allow it to work longer before your body says "oh yea?"


 Nice first post. Love these random fools that magically appear when a new product is mentioned and needs to be pushed. You think we are all idiots?

News flash, this isn't the proper platform to push a $3k laser comb. Nobody will spend that money on an unproven cap with diodes just to "thicken" a few miniaturized follicles. Tired of these product pushers. Better than Propecia?...seriously dude? You came on way to strong to be believable...

----------


## crafter

why are they FDA approved if they dont work?

----------


## burtandernie

If lasers work and they certainly might its probably something similar to derma rolling where the process of wounding causes a bunch of unknown things to happen that helps. Are you going to get a cosmetically significant amount of hair back? No way. Fighting MPB seems like a waste of time at this point unless your trying to keep hair verses regrow vast amounts of it which is just not possible right now.

----------


## Notcoolanymore

> Nice first post. Love these random fools that magically appear when a new product is mentioned and needs to be pushed. You think we are all idiots?
> 
> News flash, this isn't the proper platform to push a $3k laser comb. Nobody will spend that money on an unproven cap with diodes just to "thicken" a few miniaturized follicles. Tired of these product pushers. Better than Propecia?...seriously dude? You came on way to strong to be believable...


 He isn't on propecia, he is on prophecia, in that case I do believe the laser comb is better to regrow his hair.  I will check back in a year to see his results.

----------

