Hair-Raising First time in Bangalore

It is hair-raising, so to say. Newer breakthrough technologies in hair transplantation are changing hairlines. Techniques and Technologies are giving physicians unprecedented accuracy, efficiency and reproducibility that is transforming hair restoration.

This is happening not anywhere else, but in Namma Bangalore!. To discuss the future of hair restoration techniques, the members of Asian Hair Restoration Surgeons’ Society and the Association of Hair Restoration Surgeons of India (AHRS-India) are meeting in Bangalore from November 22-24 at Hotel Le Meredien. The meeting has attracted over 200 delegates from India and other Asian countries.  Guest faculty have confirmed their participation from USA, Spain, Iran, Egypt, Bangkok, Japan, Hongkong.

Dr. Venkataram Mysore, a city hair transplant surgeon at Venkat Charmalaya-Centre for Advanced Dermatology and Postgraduate training institute, and the President of the Congress and also the AHRS India, said the conference will deliberate upon hair transplantation, different methods such as Follicular unit transplantation, Follicular unit extraction, drug therapy and  new research topics such as hair multiplication, cloning, robotics, cellular therapy, growth factors, nonsurgical treatments such as lasers etc.

Hair transplant has seen amazing development during its evolution in the past six decades, from plugs to follicular unit transplantation, and from strip removal to (FUE) follicular unit extraction. Research is continuously trying to develop methods, which can be regarded as really new and breakthrough. It is now possible to take donor hairs not only from scalp hair, but also from other areas such as beard, body etc. It is now therefore possible to cover a large area of baldness, in large sessions called Giga sessions. Robotics is being developed to minimize human error, minimize hair damage and decrease surgeon fatigue.

However with current technologies, only relocation of hair is possible from one area to the bald area. Research, he said, is now being focused, to develop new methods and address these limitations in current transplant techniques by trying to produce more than one hair from a single hair. They include hair multiplication, gene therapy and hair cloning, though these are still in research stage and not yet applicable for practical use. Hair cloning involves taking a few of hair cells, multiplying them in the laboratory and then injecting them in bald scalp. Another scientific term for hair cloning is tissue-developed hair growth. Hair multiplication is a technique to take part of a hair, and then introduce it to the bald area to grow one new hair at bald area while at the same time retaining the original hair. The idea behind gene therapy is to separate the gene that is responsible for balding from the human DNA. This DNA will be introduced into the patient’s hair cells, preventing cells from being affected by DHT (dihydrotestosterone), a hormone responsible for destroying hair follicles and causing male pattern baldness. Manipulating DNA is not an easy task. Scientists are very keen to understand and manipulate DNA, but a great deal of research is needed before this therapy becomes reality.

The three-day Congress will be inaugurated by Dr. Sharan Kumar Patil, Minister for Medical Education, who is a dermatologist himself. The Congress will allow the public to participate in a public interactive programme at 4 pm on 24 November 2013. The entry is strictly by prior registration as there are limited registrations available. Those wanting to attend the meeting may call 080-23180818 or 41148848 for free registration.

Members of the press are welcome to interact with Dr Venkataram Mysore, Director and Hair Transplant Surgeon, Venkat Charmalaya- Centre for Advanced Dermatology and Postgraduate training institute, on 9845363520/080-23180818 /41148848. More details can also be obtained from www.haircon2013.com and www.ahrsindia.com