Hair Microscopy
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Microscopic Hair Analysis

Hair loss affects men and women of all ages for various reasons. For some, the cause is hereditary female or male pattern baldness. For others, it may be a health condition, nutrition, trauma, or medical treatment that has triggered hair loss. The key to choosing the right treatment is understanding your hair loss and hair growth on a deeper level. Hair microscopy provides the information you have been looking for. This cutting-edge technology gives scientific answers to the most important hair loss questions. Do I really have a hair loss problem? Am I losing hair density? This is your guide to what hair microscopy is, how it works, and why it is beneficial to those experiencing hair loss and those who want to set a benchmark now to help prevent hair loss in the future.

What Is Hair Microscopy?

Hair microscopy is the careful examination of hair strands under a microscope using polarized light. The hair strands and follicles are analyzed to determine the stage and health of the strands, whether you are experiencing loss of hair density, thinning hair and, if so, how much. Microscopy is the best way to take the guesswork out of hair loss and quantify what is going on with your hair.

How Does It Work?

Hair microscopy is a simple, pain-free process that provides invaluable information.

Step 1: Harvesting a Sample

A few hair strands are painlessly extracted from an inconspicuous location on your head—no need to worry. Neither you nor anyone else will notice their absence.

Step 2: Place Sample on a Slide

The hair sample is carefully placed on a microscope slide for further analysis.

Step 3: Sample Examination

Using a polarized light microscope, we can analyze hair growth and loss. Color refraction provides information about the hair strands and follicles that cannot be seen with the naked eye.

The information obtained aids in choosing the best treatment for hair loss.

What Can We Learn from Hair Microscopy?

A microsopic hair analysis in NYC and surrounding areas provides a great deal of information about the health of your hair, hair growth, and whether you are experiencing significant hair loss. Information we learn through microscopy includes:

  • Growth phase
    There are three phases of hair growth (anagen, catagen, and telogen). Through microscopy, we can identify which growth stage your hair is presently in, the percentage of miniaturized and pre-miniaturized hair and whether these percentages are within the target range for your age.
  • Loss of keratin
    Based on the color refracted under the microscope, we can tell if your hair is losing keratin. Keratin is one of the most crucial proteins for healthy hair growth. A lack of it indicates an issue with hair growth.
  • Hair thickness
    We can determine the thickness or caliber of your hair. It may be a situation where you aren’t experiencing hair loss, but hair growth is not ideal. Each strand of hair may be finer and thinner than before, indicating a hair growth problem.
  • Treatment progress
    Hair microscopy can quantify how well a treatment is or isn’t working.
  • Benchmark
    Undergoing hair microscopy before you experience hair loss provides a benchmark of what a healthy head of hair looks like for you, making it easier to identify hair loss down the road.