What is PRP treatment for hair loss?

PRP (Platelet-Rich Plasma) treatment for hair loss uses your body's own natural growth factors to revive thinning hair, strengthen follicles and boost new growth. The London PRP Clinic offers doctor-led PRP treatments for hair, scalp, and beard growth with proven results.

Does PRP work for beard growth?

Yes, PRP beard growth treatment is highly effective for filling patchy areas, enhancing beard density, and promoting thicker facial hair. Our doctor-led PRP beard treatment at £450 per session uses platelet-rich plasma to stimulate dormant hair follicles in the beard area.

How much does PRP treatment cost in London?

PRP treatment prices at The London PRP Clinic is £450 per session for PRP Hair or Beard PRP. We offer package discounts - for example, 3 PRP Hair sessions cost £1,215 (save £135).

What PRP services are available at The London PRP Clinic?

We offer PRP treatments for hair loss, beard growth, facial rejuvenation, under-eye treatment, knee joint pain, and scalp health. All treatments are doctor-led and evidence-based, delivered at our Marylebone clinic at 10 Portman Square, London.

How much does PRP cost for hair loss in London?

At The London PRP Clinic, PRP hair treatment costs £450 per session including clinician recommended aftercare. Most patients need 3-4 initial sessions (3-session course available at £1,215, saving £135). ExoRevive exosome treatment is £445 per session.

Does PRP really work for hair loss?

Yes, clinical studies show PRP is 70-90% effective for androgenetic alopecia. At our clinic, 87% of patients report significant improvement with an average 32% increase in hair density after 3-4 sessions. Results are best for Norwood stages 1-4.

What's better PRP or hair transplant?

PRP is ideal for early-stage hair loss (Norwood 1-4): non-surgical, no downtime, £450 per session. Hair transplants suit advanced loss (Norwood 5-7): permanent but surgical, 2-week recovery, £3,000-15,000. Many combine both for optimal results - PRP strengthens existing hair and enhances transplant survival.

How long do PRP results last?

PRP results typically last 12-18 months with proper maintenance. After initial 3-4 sessions, maintenance treatments every 6 months sustain results. Some patients using our combined protocol (PRP + supplements) report results lasting up to 2 years.

Is PRP painful for hair?

PRP involves minimal discomfort. We use topical numbing cream 30 minutes before treatment. Most patients rate pain as 2-3/10, describing it as 'mild pinching.' The entire procedure takes 60 minutes with no downtime - you can return to work immediately.

Can I wash my hair after PRP?

Wait 24 hours before washing your hair after PRP. Use lukewarm water and gentle shampoo for the first wash. Avoid swimming pools, saunas, and intense exercise for 48 hours. We provide detailed aftercare instructions and organic hair oil for optimal healing.

What are the newest hair loss treatments in 2025?

The newest effective hair loss treatments in 2025 include low-dose oral minoxidil (2.5-5mg daily), topical finasteride (0.25%), platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy, and low-level laser therapy devices. Emerging treatments like JAK inhibitors and topical androgen receptor antagonists are showing promising results in clinical trials.

Does oral minoxidil work for hair loss?

Yes, low-dose oral minoxidil (2.5-5mg daily) has proven highly effective for both male and female pattern hair loss. Studies show it's particularly effective for overall thinning, with manageable side effects primarily limited to mild hypertrichosis (extra hair growth).

Is PRP effective for hair restoration?

Yes, PRP therapy has demonstrated significant improvement in hair count and thickness in clinical trials. Most patients see noticeable results after 3-4 sessions, using the body's own growth factors to stimulate dormant hair follicles.

What's the best hair loss treatment in London?

The best hair loss treatment depends on your specific condition, but combination therapy often yields optimal results. The London PRP Clinic offers personalised treatment plans combining PRP therapy with other evidence-based treatments. Book a free consultation to determine the best approach for your hair loss pattern.

How much does PRP hair treatment cost in London?

PRP hair treatment costs vary based on the number of sessions needed. The London PRP Clinic offers competitive pricing with free initial consultations. Contact us via WhatsApp for a personalised quote based on your specific treatment needs.

PRP vs PRF. How Preparation Decides Your Result

26 Sept

Written By Omar Elalfy

PRP is not one standard product. Clinics use different kits, spin protocols and platelet concentrations, and those choices change what goes into your scalp, skin or joint. PRF, or platelet-rich fibrin, is a newer variant made without anticoagulant that releases growth factors more slowly. Early trials are encouraging, but PRP has far more evidence behind it. How a clinic prepares its plasma is one of the best questions you can ask.

Key points

A 2019 review in the International Journal of Women's Dermatology proposed a platelet concentration of 3 to 6 times whole blood for hair loss, with 3 monthly sessions and maintenance afterwards.
PRP is prepared differently from clinic to clinic, which is one reason the trial literature is uneven. Two treatments sold as PRP can differ materially.
A 2026 multicentre randomised trial in the Journal of Dermatological Treatment found injectable PRF and concentrated growth factors increased hair count more than PRP in female pattern hair loss.
PRP has a 2025 meta-analysis of 43 randomised trials and 1,877 participants behind it for hair. PRF's evidence base is newer and much smaller.

Want to know how your PRP would be prepared? Message a GMC-registered doctor on WhatsApp or email team@thewellnesslondon.com.

Why preparation matters

The same name, different products

Every clinic starts with a blood sample and a centrifuge. From there, choices diverge. How much blood is drawn. How long and how fast it is spun. Whether it is spun once or twice. Whether white blood cells are kept or removed. Whether the plasma is activated. How much volume ends up in the syringe.

Each choice changes the final platelet concentration and the mix of cells in it. That is why reviewers consistently say PRP is not a standardised treatment. It is also part of why some trials show strong results and others weaker ones.

What this means for you

The evidence for PRP in general is not automatically evidence for the PRP a particular clinic provides. A clinic that cannot tell you its kit and protocol is asking you to take the most important variable on trust.

What good preparation looks like

Platelet concentration

For hair loss, Stevens and Khetarpal's 2019 review proposed pure PRP with platelets enriched 3 to 6 times above the concentration in whole blood. Too little concentration risks an underpowered treatment. Higher is not automatically better, and very high concentrations have not been shown to add benefit.

White cells

Leukocyte-poor PRP removes most white blood cells. Leukocyte-rich PRP keeps them. White cells can increase inflammation, which may help in some tendon settings and is less wanted in others. In hip osteoarthritis, for example, research suggests leukocyte-poor preparations produce greater pain reduction than leukocyte-rich ones.

Spin protocol and volume

Single-spin and double-spin systems produce different concentrations and volumes. What matters is that the clinic uses a validated system consistently and can explain what it delivers.

Sterility and handling

PRP is a blood product. It should be prepared in a closed or sterile system, used promptly, and never shared or stored between patients. In the UK, the MHRA treats PRP used for a medical purpose as an unlicensed medicine that doctors may prepare for their own named patients.

Want this explained for your treatment? Ask our doctors on WhatsApp.

What PRF is

How it differs

PRF, or platelet-rich fibrin, is prepared without anticoagulant and spun at lower speed. The blood begins to clot naturally, forming a fibrin mesh that traps platelets and white cells. The injectable liquid form is usually called i-PRF.

The fibrin mesh is thought to release growth factors more slowly and over a longer period than PRP, which releases most of its growth factors quickly. That slower release is the main theoretical argument for PRF.

What the evidence shows for hair

A 2026 prospective multicentre randomised trial in the Journal of Dermatological Treatment compared PRP, i-PRF and concentrated growth factors in women with female pattern hair loss. It concluded that i-PRF and concentrated growth factors were more effective than PRP at increasing target-area hair count, and that i-PRF had the lowest rate of side effects.

A 2024 randomised trial of 100 patients with androgenetic alopecia, followed for 6 months, also reported greater gains in hair density and thickness with i-PRF than with PRP, with higher patient satisfaction.

How to read that evidence

The findings are promising and worth taking seriously. They are also early. PRP for hair has a 2025 meta-analysis of 43 randomised trials and 1,877 participants behind it. PRF has a handful of trials, often small or single-centre, and its preparation varies just as much as PRP's does.

The fair summary is that PRF may turn out to be better for some patients. It has not yet displaced PRP as the best-evidenced option, and anyone presenting it as proven superior is ahead of the data.

PRP vs PRF at a glance

Anticoagulant. PRP uses one to stop the blood clotting. PRF uses none.

Spin. PRP is usually spun faster, sometimes twice. PRF is spun slowly, once.

Release. PRP releases most growth factors quickly. PRF is thought to release them more gradually.

White cells. PRP can be leukocyte-poor or leukocyte-rich. PRF naturally retains more white cells.

Evidence for hair. PRP has a large, established base of randomised trials. PRF has a smaller, newer and encouraging one.

Questions to ask any clinic about its PRP

Free to use anywhere, including with us.

Which kit or centrifuge system do you use?
What platelet concentration does your protocol aim for, relative to whole blood?
Is it leukocyte-poor or leukocyte-rich, and why for my condition?
Is it spun once or twice, and how much do you inject?
Who prepares it, and who injects it?
How many sessions, and what is the evidence for that schedule?

A clinic that answers these directly understands what it is giving you. Vague answers usually mean the preparation has not been thought about.

Why a good preparation still fails without diagnosis

The best-prepared PRP will underperform on a follicle short of iron, a thyroid problem left untreated, or a scarring alopecia mistaken for pattern loss. For joints, it will not help a mechanical problem or advanced arthritis. Preparation decides how good the treatment can be. Diagnosis decides whether it was the right treatment at all. The most common reasons PRP fails are set out in why PRP did not work.

What treatment costs in London

Flagship Harley Street and Mayfair clinics commonly charge £600 to £850 or more per hair PRP session, and from around £780 to £900 or more per image-guided joint injection. A lower price usually reflects a different kit, a lower concentration, no image guidance and no diagnosis beforehand.

Our care is doctor-led and priced below flagship central London rates, with your plan and the exact figure confirmed after your free suitability review.

Ask what your plan would involve. Message us on WhatsApp.

The suitability review

Every enquiry begins with a free doctor-led suitability review rather than a booking. A GMC-registered doctor assesses you, arranges blood tests or ultrasound where needed, explains how your treatment would be prepared, and discusses where PRF's newer evidence stands if it is relevant to you.

You then get one of two answers. Approved for treatment, with a clear plan and cost. Or not approved, with an honest explanation of what would serve you better.

Why people choose The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness

The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness is a doctor-led, blood-test-first clinic at 10 Portman Square in Marylebone and the Light Centre in Belgravia. Every treatment is performed by GMC-registered doctors. No clinician treats a patient here until they have completed 100 supervised treatments, and we teach PRP preparation and technique to other doctors through our Academy.

Across our work we report an 87 percent patient success rate, a 32 percent average density increase in hair restoration and more than 187 five-star reviews. The overview of every treatment we offer is in PRP treatment London.

Book your free suitability review. Message us on WhatsApp, email team@thewellnesslondon.com, or call +44 20 3951 3429.

Frequently asked questions about PRP and PRF

What is the difference between PRP and PRF?

PRP is made with an anticoagulant and spun faster, releasing growth factors quickly. PRF is made without anticoagulant and spun slowly, forming a fibrin mesh thought to release growth factors more gradually.

Is PRF better than PRP for hair loss?

Early trials are encouraging. A 2026 multicentre trial found i-PRF increased hair count more than PRP in female pattern hair loss. PRP still has a much larger evidence base, so PRF is promising rather than proven superior.

Is all PRP the same?

No. Kits, spin protocols, platelet concentration and white cell content vary between clinics, so two treatments sold as PRP can differ materially.

What platelet concentration should PRP have?

A 2019 review proposed 3 to 6 times the concentration of whole blood for hair loss. Ask any clinic what its protocol aims for.

What is leukocyte-poor PRP?

PRP with most white blood cells removed. It produces less inflammation and, in hip osteoarthritis, has been associated with greater pain reduction than leukocyte-rich PRP.

How do I know if a clinic's PRP is good?

Ask which kit it uses, the target platelet concentration, whether it is leukocyte-poor or rich, how much is injected and who prepares and injects it. Clear answers are a good sign.

This article is for information and does not replace personal medical advice. PRP and PRF preparation is not standardised, and the evidence for PRF is still developing. Individual results vary. All treatments at The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness are performed by GMC-registered doctors. Reviewed by the medical team at The London PRP Clinic by The Wellness. Last updated September 2026.

Omar Elalfy