Botox fights baldness / Botox contra a calvície

Simon Ourian, cirurgião cosmético, de Beverly Hills, Califórnia, diz ter feito uma descoberta poderosa acidental, quando tratava sua mãe, que sofria de dores de cabeça após ter-se submetido à quimioterapia, que lhe causou a queda dos cabelos.

Acostumado com o uso do Botox no tratamento de dores de cabeça, ele o injetou no couro cabeludo de sua mãe e surpreendeu-se ao notar que de seus cabelos pareciam estar crescendo de novo.

Depois, testou o procedimento em outros pacientes durante três anos, com a adição de vitaminas, para tornar o processo mais eficaz. "Com meus pacientes essas injeções de Botox para eliminar a calvície têm sido mais eficazes e seguras do que qualquer outro tratamento."

Se os seus procedimentos forem cientificamente testados, poderão vir a ser usados no tratamento da calvície. A base teórica é que, ao relaxar os tecidos, o Botox permite um afluxo sanguíneo maior, levando mais nutrientes aos folículos pilosos.

Dr Simon Ourian, a cosmetic surgeon based in Beverly Hills, California, claimed that he stumbled upon its unexpected powers by accident while treating his mother who was suffering from migraines after having chemotherapy which had made her hair fall out.

Familiar with Botox's use as a headache treatment, he injected the chemical – the medical name for a form of Botulinum toxin – into her scalp but was surprised to find that it also appeared to help her hair to grow back.

He said that he tested his discovery on volunteers for three years, adding a mixture of vitamins to make the process more effective.

"With my patients these Botox vitamin injections for baldness have been very safe and more effective than anything I have seen before," he Dr Ourian.

If his claims are proved in formal scientific trials it could potentially be used as the basis for new treatments for baldness.

The theory is that by dilating blood vessels, Botox, a relaxant, allows nutrients into shrunk follicles by dilating the blood vessels.