fig7

Figure 7. Transition from dormant stage (no hair production for 3 years) to anagen stage induction by minoxidil topical solution. After a prolonged dormant phase characterized by no hair production over 36 months, we successfully induced regrowth in both grafts through the topical application of a 5% MTS. Imaging was conducted biweekly, starting from May 2024 (A shows the baseline image before application, and panel F shows the final result). MTS 5% was applied at least twice daily, with a light massage in the targeted area. Hair shafts emerged from the follicular ostia (proximal graft indicated by the grey circle on the left and distal graft by the white circle on the right), initially as fine, poorly pigmented fibers. Over time, between D45 (D) and D60 (E) post-treatment, more and more pigmented and curved hairs were observed. Interestingly, around D30 of MTS application, before the shafts appeared at the skin surface, a disappearing reticular pattern of capillary blood vessels was seen along the path that would later be followed by the regrowing root (proximal graft). Computer-assisted image analysis of panel “C” identified a number of clusters. Clusters containing at least three pixels were dot-mapped. Based on their proximity to the implanted graft, the dots were color-coded (green for the graft area and red for more distant dermal regions). As illustrated in C’ and C’’, 36 dots were located in the root area and 5 in more remote dermal fields. The latter were considered background noise, as opposed to the signal density associated with the induced regrowing root. Growth was maintained with MTS until August 2024 (F). MTS: Minoxidil lotion.