Medical Specialists® Pharmacy launch Mobile Website after huge Patient Demand

Medical Specialists® Pharmacy are delighted to announce they have now gone mobile! The new mobile website has been created due to the ever-changing requirements of their patients, with increasingly hectic lifestyles now meaning a lot of us are using our mobile phones or tablets to access the internet whilst on the go.

The streamlined mobile site will offer a much faster, efficient and overall better browsing experience for all new and existing patients, with optimal download speed and a site that has been designed specifically for the differing screen shapes and sizes of mobile devices.

Introducing the mobile version of the Medical Specialists® website will be fantastic news to those always on the move throughout the day, with little time to sit down at a computer, or even those that don’t own a computer. The pharmacy receives countless phone calls from patients each and every day looking to place a telephone order with them purely because they are struggling to order from their tablet or phone, so the Medical Specialists® IT department realised a mobile-friendly website was absolutely vital to cater for the needs of the massive patient base that come to them.

Those patients that are returning to Medical Specialists® will now be able to log-in to their user area within seconds of accessing the mobile site, with a more concise, rapid and mobile-friendly browsing experience when searching for treatments of conditions like erectile dysfunction, male pattern baldness, alcohol dependence and much more.

After all, nobody wants to spend time on their mobile phone or tablet attempting to frantically scroll through a condensed desktop website that is simply too difficult to read and too time consuming when trying to perform the most basic of tasks on it.

Most of us will have been there before…somebody sends us a link to a website either by text message or email, and clicking on the link merely brings up an unviewable, scrambled, chaotic mess. Annoyingly, the screen size will probably have to be resized upon each click of that website’s subpages – zooming in and out – with agonisingly slow loading times from all the text and images the mobile device will have to load from the desktop site.

Moreover, imagine as a business having a collection of your website links all squashed together just because the page isn’t configured for a mobile device, coupled with the fact we have to use our fingers which aren’t as accurate as the click of a computer mouse…potential customers may find themselves consistently pressing the wrong link and quickly ending up very frustrated!

If the user can’t easily browse and read the content on a specific website from their mobile device, they will leave frustrated, uninspired, and that particular business has just lost out on a potential sale and long-term customer.

Anyone already familiar with Medical Specialists® will perhaps not be surprised at the introduction of the new mobile site. For over 20 years they have been at the forefront of using the internet as an efficient way of reaching out to patients, mainly with the changing demands of today’s world. Back in 1994 Medical Specialists® was heavily involved in computerisation of their patients and medication, and then by 2001 became the first legal online clinic in the UK supplying a range of medication via online consultation, by their in-house Doctor.

Then from 2012, the pharmacy could dispense NHS prescriptions either by patients sending their paper prescriptions or if the patient’s GP sends the prescription to the pharmacy via the Electronic Prescription Service. As previously reported on the Chamber of Commerce, in 2014 Medical Specialists® also started to offer certain over-the-counter products on e-commerce giant Amazon, and has seen this side of the business boom in the subsequent months. Therefore, the need for a mobile site was imperative and may lead to even further growth for Medical Specialists® in the very near future!

High-tech iGrow Hair Growth System uses lasers to re-grow lost hair

The battle against hair loss has a new futuristic-looking device in its arsenal, in the form of a new high-tech helmet that will apparently help to regrow hairs through the use of lasers.

Setting users back a whopping £665, the iGrow Hair Growth System utilises low-level laser therapy (LLLT) – 51 low-level red laser and LED lights. The creators Apira Science claim the device will strengthen cells within the hair follicles, and benefit those experiencing thinning hair, hereditary baldness, or have other hair loss conditions.

The iGrow helmet should be worn for 25 minutes, and to prevent the person feeling bored, it comes equipped with an iPod and MP3 interface, in addition to some headphones built-in for good measure.
Just a few months ago, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved the iGrow specifically for the promotion of hair growth in males who have androgenetic alopecia and is attainable by prescription only.

However, Apira CEO Nicholas Brox commented in a news release that Apira are attempting to receive authorisation for iGrow to be an over-the-counter product, in addition to be available to women too.

Apira have made bold claims about the iGrow and say it is ‘zero’ side-effects, is safe and effective, and provides a minimum of 35-40% increase in hair growth – with results apparently evident within just six weeks. However, there will be a nine month wait for the iGrow to properly take effect. This is more of a wait than the popular hair loss treatment Finasteride (Propecia), which has been shown to prevent further hair loss and promote the re-growth of scalp hair in roughly 80% of patients within three to six months.

Giving his opinion about the iGrow device, which bears a resemblance to an old salon hairdryer, Dr Thomy Kouremada-Zioga, hair transplant surgeon at The Private Clinic of Harley Street, commented: “Low level laser therapy (LLLT) is a safe form of light treatment which has long been explored as a potential resolution to genetic forms of hair loss common in men and women, like androgenetic alopecia or pattern balding. It is intended for men and women with thinning hair or pattern baldness caused by a hereditary condition, and not by any other form of hair loss.”

He added: “This technology is not particularly new; it is something that has been around for many years in different forms. For example, for many years now I have recommended certain patients (both men and women) use a laser comb, which is a very similar device to the iGrow Hair Growth System. A laser comb like this also works with LLLT technology, but is a much smaller device. From the patients I have seen who have gone on to use the system, I can see that it can offer some positive effects when used in conjunction with a product which stimulates hair growth like Regaine. However, it is very unlikely that a patient who is losing their hair will see any form of major restoration by using the device. It may cause some of the thin hair on the patient’s head to look slightly thicker and healthier, but the patient is unlikely to see any form of actual re-growth. Before investing in a system like this, it is important that the man or woman understands exactly what is causing their hair loss; something which a hair loss specialist will be able to determine. Investing in a device like this may offer no long-term solution at all to the patient and it should not be viewed as a viable long-term hair restoration method.”

Hair-raising facts

. After you are born, no new hair follicles are formed.
. Approximately 100,000 hair follicles cover the average scalp.
. Half of all men have thinning hair by the time they reach the age of 50.
. Male pattern baldness accounts for 95% of hair loss cases in men.
. Male pattern baldness can actually be inherited from the mother’s or father’s side.
. Male pattern baldness can start in your teens, or as late as your 30s.

The distress of living with female hair loss

Male hair loss can be an upsetting thing to experience as given the choice; very few (if any) would choose to lose any hair from their head. They can no longer style their hair as they used to, as well as feeling undesirable to the opposite of sex and may receive light-hearted jibes from friends about their hair loss – which over time can affect confidence and self-esteem.

However, hair loss is not something experienced solely by men and for many women who suffer with this problem, the stress and emotional aspects involved with this can be much, much worse.  A 1992 study featured in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology contrasted psychological impact of hair loss on both sexes and found that women had a more issues about body image and were less able to accept the fact they had lost some hair.

We live in an age where media places far too much focus on what they deem as ‘beauty’ and there is an ever-growing obsession with celebrity culture, with more and more figures in the public eye resorting to whatever expensive treatment possible to retain a youthful appearance.

Hair loss can have a devastating impact on a woman’s confidence and it can be made worse by the fact some GPs are still failing to recognise female hair loss as a genuine medical problem, ignoring the huge distress endured by the majority of those who are affected, “because you are never going to die from it”, says Iain Sallis, a consultant Trichologist at a top hair clinic.

Elaine Nixon is just one of an estimated 8 million women in the UK alone who have some degree of hair loss. Elaine had such an impressive head of hair during her teenage years that she fashioned different styles for a hairdresser’s. However, when Elaine began to lose her locks by the time she was just 24 years of age, this prompted one particularly unforgettable and hurtful comment from a stranger at a bar who said: “You’re going a bit bald there aren’t you, love?”

“After that I just stopped going out” says Elaine, now 39. “You notice people looking at your hairline, not just in your eyes. It makes you so self-conscious. My confidence was stripped. I saw my GP at the time, but he was useless. I also went to see a cosmetic surgeon. But when I rang back after the initial appointment, the receptionist said ‘Oh yes, the consultant’s said there’s nothing we can do’. I was distraught. My real fear was I’d end up with a wig.”

Elaine’s hair loss was eventually pinpointed to a male hormone treatment she had been prescribed for a congenital deformity of her fallopian tubes, however there are a number of different causes for hair loss, and understanding the varying types of hair loss is important. Elaine sought help from a hair transplant expert for her hair loss, but for the majority of people this option is simple not viable. Operations cost thousands of pounds at a time, and more than one is usually required.
The main types of hair loss are:

. Telogen effluvium: General shedding/thinning of the hair that is normally only a temporary occurrence. It can develop rapidly, usually about 1 to 3 months following major ‘shock’ placed on the body such as stress, childbirth, sudden weight loss, illness, operation, or reaction to a medication. Regular hair growth and thickness is seen after a few months however persistent shedding may be caused by an iron deficiency or underactive thyroid gland.

. Androgenic alopecia: The most common type of hair loss in both men and women, striking in varying severity. The reason for the occurrence of thinning hair is connected to hormones named ‘androgens’ and in particularly; dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This powerful hormone stimulates facial and bodily hair growth but has adverse effects on hair located on the head. It is believed that DHT initiates a process by which hair follicles begin to deteriorate over time and eventually stop producing hair entirely. Women usually experience a thinning of hair from the top of the head and it can get more noticeable after the menopause.

. Alopecia areata: Thought to be an autoimmune disease, it primarily affects teenagers and young adults resulting in round, patchy hair loss areas that may merge into one over time. The hair follicles are not permanently damaged, and in most instances the person will see hair growing back after several months. In a few cases, hair loss may be permanent but treatments to stimulate hair growth sometimes work.

Female hair loss may be helped through a number of different treatments. One of these is Minoxidil, dispensed by Medical Specialists as Regaine treatment for women (containing 2% Minoxidil). Speaking after British cyclist Joanna Rowsell’s Gold during the London Olympics, David Bailey, a leading UK Trichologist said, “2% Minoxidil is likely to give a cosmetically acceptable regrowth in those with patchy alopecia areata, but, using 5% Minoxidil in clinical trials gave an 81% response (1). It would appear that an occlusion of the treated area appears to be necessary to achieve and maintain maximum results.”

Medical Specialists offer a huge range of treatments at low prices for both male and female hair loss, so do not delay and head to the Women’s Health or Men’s Health areas of the website to see which treatment option is most suitable for you.

(1)     Fiedler-Weiss VC. (1987) “Topical minoxidil solution (1% and 5%) in the treatment of alopecia areata..” J Am Acad Dermatol. 16(3 Pt 2):745-8.

Has actor Jeremy Piven had a hair transplant?

The growing number celebrities who have gone under the knife to reverse the process of male pattern baldness has been increased according to a one of the world’s leading hair transplant surgeons who is adamant that American actor Jeremy Piven has undergone the procedure.

Dr Bessam Farjo boasts a celebrity client-list that includes Dragons’ Den multi-millionaire Duncan Bannatyne and operates The Farjo Medical Centre, performing the first ever live streaming of a hair transplant procedure last year when he operate on former Premier League and England footballer Michael Gray. Dr Farjo claims that photographs of Piven taken on a Hawaii beach in 2010 clearly show the results of having received such a cosmetic procedure.

In one of the photos, Piven is seen removing his cap to reveal a large scar running across the back of his head and what Dr Farjo explains is a characteristic of a ‘strip method’ hair transplant. He comments: “From the picture, I would say he has had around 3,000 grafts, costing up to £9,000.”

Piven is perhaps most memorable for his starring role as Ari Gold in the television series Entourage, which has earned him Golden Globe and Emmy Awards.  He can currently be seen in the Sunday night ITV drama series ‘Mr Selfridge’, portraying Harry Selfridge – the founder of the Selfridges department stores.

Viewers will see the good-looking 47 year-old sporting an impressively thick mane and Dr Farjo’s assertion about the actor’s strand-by-strand hair transplant, would appear to hold some weight. Back in the early to mid-1990s, Piven featured in several films as well as TV shows such as Seinfeld and Ellen, with a receding hairline that is drastically different from his look in the present day.

Of course, Piven is just the latest celebrity to opt for an expensive hair transplant procedure that can sometimes cost tens of thousands of pounds. In June 2011 Manchester United and England footballer Wayne Rooney caused a stir when he posted a picture onto his Twitter account showing his slightly bloodied and painful-looking head, following surgery at a London Harley Street clinic.

At the time, Rooney had been on the receiving end of jibes from teammates and was applauded by many for speaking about his transplant with a buoyant attitude saying: “Just to confirm to all my followers I have had a hair transplant. I was going bald at 25 why not. I’m delighted with the result” before later revealing more to his thousands of Twitter followers and added: “It’s still a bit bruised and swollen when it dies down u will be first to see it. Anyone recommend any good hair gel. Haha” and “’I had it done in Harley street hair clinic London. Thanks to all the staff who looked after me.”

Setting patients back thousands of pounds for just one procedure of a potential many, hair transplants can only be afforded by a small minority of the millions of men around the world suffering with male pattern baldness.  In times of a crippling recession and austerity in Britain and many other countries, these expensive procedures are simply not a viable option for most.

For both men and women suffering from hair loss, Medical Specialists Pharmacy have a huge range of effective and much cheaper treatment options such as Propecia to combat male pattern baldness, Regaine, Alpecin caffeine shampoo, and for women: Florisene and Dianette– which can also be used for acne, hirsutism and contraceptive purposes. Visit the Men’s Health or Women’s Health area of the Medical Specialists website to find out more information on how to obtain these hair loss treatments.

Justin Bieber says Prince William should use Propecia to fight his hair loss

Canadian pop superstar Justin Bieber is perhaps not famously renowned for his medical knowledge or hair loss expertise. Despite this, it has not stopped the teen icon from offering his words of wisdom on the rapidly diminishing mane of Prince William and urging him to use the effective hair restoration medication, Propecia.

The 18-year-old ‘Boyfriend’ singer made his jibes about the balding 30-year-old Prince when  speaking to Rollercoaster magazine during a recent promotional trip to the UK in support of his ‘Believe’ album.

Bieber first emerged into the global spotlight back in 2008 after being discovered via his uploaded home videos on YouTube. Part of Bieber’s popularity was somewhat due to his baby-faced good looks, and luxurious flowing locks which he initially had stylised into a bowl-shaped cut upon his breakthrough. However, for the previous two years Bieber has sported a much shorter spiked-up quiff after causing a massive media sensation in 2010 when he decided to get rid of his longer hair.

Whereas Bieber can grow his hair back should he wish to do so, Prince William has been losing his hair an alarming rate in recent years and where hair is concerned, he has evidently taken after his father Prince Charles and uncle Prince Edward who are both suffering with male pattern baldness (MPB).

For the interview in Rollercoaster Magazine, Bieber was quizzed about what he would do if he started to lose his locks to MPB and his hair started to thin like the young Prince’s. Justin said, “I mean, there are things to prevent that nowadays, like Propecia. I don’t know why he doesn’t just get those things, those products. You just take Propecia and your hair grows back. Have you not got it over here?”

In reply to Justin’s question; yes we do have Propecia ‘over here’ and it is obtainable today from Medical Specialists Pharmacy working out from as little as £47.58 per month. The medication Propecia (finasteride) is commonly used to treat male pattern baldness and works by blocking the conversion of testosterone to an androgen thought to cause hair loss. Its effectiveness and popularity are obvious when even a teenage pop star with a full head of hair is aware of its existence!

With Male pattern baldness affecting 6.5 million men in the UK alone, Medical Specialists are committed to doing everything we can to help. Other options as well as Propecia, include Regaine Foam, as seen on television adverts. Obtainable from Medical Specialists Pharmacy from as little as £46.45, this product contains the active ingredient Minoxidil which is clinically proven to help prevent further hereditary hair loss, showing success in 4 out of 5 men. It works by increasing the blood supply to the hair follicles which helps to strengthen existing hair and stimulate secondary hair growth.

There are also emerging over the counter products that have been released in recent times. Alpecin Caffeine C1 Shampoo stimulates hair growth directly at the roots, strengthens weakened hair roots and prevents hereditary hair loss. In just in 2 minutes, the active ingredient travels along the hair shaft directly into the hair follicles. If the shampoo is left on for longer, the caffeine will also penetrate into the scalp.

When leading Trichologist David Bailey was asked about Bieber comments, he said, “Well it would seem obvious from his comments that he knows all about Male Pattern Hair Loss! How does he know whether the Prince is already taking Propecia or not? As the manufacturer clearly states, it works in the majority of men, but not all. Also, not everybody can take Propecia, they have to have it prescribed by a Doctor after a consultation.”

L’Oreal experts develop new treatment for hair loss

Trichologists from Paris have discovered information that could possible pave the way for new methods of treating baldness. Head of hair biology Dr Bruno Bernard and his team at L’Oreal Paris underwent research and found that some hair follicles can become trapped in their resting or ‘sleeping’ state, which then means new hair is not grown and eventually will fall out. Usually hair strands grow for about four years before the follicles become dormant and the strand will fall out. As the follicles remain dormant, stem cells in the skin should begin to kick-start the procedure of growing new hair. However, this process is interrupted and fails to occur for people who are suffering from baldness.

The researchers however may not be able to completely halt the balding process forever; the hair follicles inevitably lose the ability to make new hair. For people who are looking a little thin on top, the future products the team are developing could come in handy and prevent you from having to do a dreaded ‘comb over’, using embarrassing wigs, or hugely expensive hair transplants. Of course, there are already many products available on the market right now that have been shown to effectively combat hair loss in both men and women, such as Propecia, Regaine, Alpecin caffeine shampoo, and Dianette for women – which can also be used for acne, hirsutism and contraceptive purposes.

Dr Bernard says that the company are exploring a treatment that can either be applied to your scalp in a cream or shampoo which may help in hair regrowth. He spoke out on the current developments and said, “Hair follicles exist in two stable states – either an active state or a dormant state. From time to time, they will jump from one state to another. Some of the follicles are just resting in the dormant state and are waiting for the right signal to make new hair. They are in a latency period. If you can reduce this latency period, you will have more hair. We have identified a compound and we are going to make a formulation of it that can be applied to the scalp to wake the follicle up from its sleeping state to the active state.”

David Bailey, a leading UK Trichologist and now retired said, “I can’t see how this treatment can help. There are basically three stages to the hair cycle: Anagen (growing phase), Catagen (resting phase) which lasts about three months, and Telogen (falling out phase). It would seem that this treatment works on shortening the Catagen phase, which is only three months, and would not stop the hair loss process which reduces the Anagen phase.”

At Medical Specialists Pharmacy we are fully aware of the impact both male and female pattern baldness can have on a person. It can be massively detrimental to one’s confidence and self-esteem. Male-pattern baldness is the most common type of hair loss, affecting 6.5 million men in the UK and an estimated 35 million in the U.S. In addition, it is believed there are 8 million women just in the UK who suffer from some degree of hair loss. As mentioned earlier, we offer a huge range of prescription and non-prescription treatments that can slow down the process of thinning hair, promote hair growth and help regain your confidence.

22,000 see former footballer Michael Gray‘s hair transplant

Yesterday approximately 22,000 people from around the world tuned in to witness former Premier League and England footballer Michael Gray receive what is thought to be the first ever live streaming of a hair transplant procedure. The seven-hour long intricate operation was performed by medical director of the Institute of Trichologists, Dr Bessam Farjo, and came to a conclusion at 6.50pm after initially getting underway at 10am. Dr Farjo is a hair loss and hair transplant expert and incredibly he is in his 19^th year of performing such procedures like the one seen yesterday on 37 year old Gray, who is currently employed as a football pundit on Talksport.

Viewers were able to see a close-up of Dr Farjo extracting thousands of hair follicles from the back of Gray’s head and implanting them into the receding areas at the front. Gray explained that after seeing other celebrities such as Wayne Rooney have similar procedures, he chose to go under the knife himself after his previous blonde flowing locks began to diminish at around the age of 32. Gray took to his Twitter account throughout the operation to update his followers on the proceedings, and was involved in a question and answer session. In addition, Dr Farjo also answered questions throughout the procedure, which involved a team of two doctors and six nursing technicians.

The ex-England International gave a detailed account into what persuaded him to seek the help from Dr Farjo, “I think it’s more acceptable now and that was one of the reasons that I wanted to go through with it,’ he said before the operation. Cosmetic surgery now is an everyday occurrence. People might be out there and may be worried about the operation and if I’m going to get it done then why not let people see it. There’s a lot of people out there who are worried about it. Here they can see it from start to finish. I’m working in the media at the moment and doing quite a lot of the TV and when I watch myself back I’m conscious about the way I look, so from the confidence side of things I’m hoping that will beat that. People refer to the harrowing experience a woman must go through when losing her hair, however it can be equally upsetting for men, who can suffer from a severe loss of self-esteem. I hope the live broadcast will help us to educate people about hair transplant surgery and open up discussions around the solutions available to those experiencing hair loss.”

With more and more people undergoing hair transplant operations, Dr Farjo links this to the recent increase in celebrities who have paid for the expensive solution to hair loss. Dr Farjo commented, “Obviously 20 years ago people generally had a different attitude or feeling about things like cosmetic surgery and lifestyle issues, it was very much not talked about. It’s a far cry from where we are now.” Dr Farjo is now optimistic that yesterday’s live streaming may pave the way for more men to seek help with their hair loss and added, “Our broadcast is intended to orchestrate a pioneering moment for the hair loss community, as well as the surgical field, giving the nation a first-hand look at the procedure and helping to dispel misconceptions around hair transplant surgery.” Gray can now look forward to hairs beginning to grow in around three months time, with more obvious results visible after between eight and fourteen months.