Anatomy of the Hair Follicle
Before learning how the HairMax LaserComb works to reinvigorate hair growth, it is important to understand how hair grows. Each strand of hair on your scalp consists of a hair shaft, which is visible above the skin, and a hair root, which resides in a hair follicle beneath the skin surface. Projecting into the base of each hair follicle and hair root is a structure called the dermal papilla, which is composed of rapidly dividing cells. These cells pack together in the hair follicle, forming the hair shaft. Hair grows in a three phase cycle. In an initial phase, known as anagen, the hair is actively growing in the hair follicle. During a transitional phase, known as catagen, the hair follicle retracts and pulls away from the dermal papilla, causing the hair to stop growing. In a final resting phase, known as telogen, the hair follicle remains inactive. As the anagen phase begins again in the following cycle, the old hair shaft is often pushed out by the new hair as it grows.