BLOG

What Are the Effects of Exosome Drip Therapy? Explaining the Disadvantages and Side Effects

Exosome Drip Therapy has attracted attention for its beauty benefits, including skin rejuvenation.
Because exosomes are administered directly into the body using an IV drip, some people may want to understand not only the expected effects but also the disadvantages.

Here, we clearly explain the effects, disadvantages, and side effects of Exosome Drip Therapy for those interested in this treatment.

Contents

What Is Exosome Drip Therapy?

What Is Exosome Drip Therapy?

Exosome Drip Therapy is a treatment that has attracted attention as an aging-care therapy.
It produces its effects by introducing exosomes directly into the blood vessels through an IV drip. Exosomes are believed to have significant beauty benefits and to repair cells.

Because exosomes act on various cells, including those in the skin, muscles, and blood vessels, and promote their activation, they may improve cells that have declined with age and benefit both beauty and health.

What Are Exosomes in the First Place?

Exosomes are extremely small substances contained in stem cell culture supernatant, the liquid produced when stem cells are cultured, and they function to transmit information between cells.
When cells receive information from exosomes, they are said to act according to the instructions in that information, promoting regeneration and repair.

When exosomes enter the body through an IV drip and circulate throughout the body, they reach cells throughout the body whose function has declined with age.
This promotes regeneration and repair and activates cells throughout the body, resulting in an overall rejuvenating effect.

Methods of Exosome Therapy

Exosome Therapy produces effects by administering exosomes directly into the body.
The main administration methods are IV drips, Derma Pen, and injections. The method selected depends on the area being treated and the purpose of the treatment.

Five Effects of Exosomes

Five Effects of Exosomes

Exosomes act on cells and produce effects on the body at the cellular level.
What kinds of effects can they have?

The effects that may be obtained from exosomes include the following.

  • Provides a skin-rejuvenating effect
  • Relieves fatigue and supports health
  • Helps prevent skin problems such as atopic dermatitis
  • Provides vitality to the brain
  • For hair loss, cancer treatment, and more

As described above, exosomes promote the regeneration and repair of weakened cells and activate cells throughout the body. As a result, they may provide a wide range of beauty and health benefits.

Let us now look at each one in detail.

Effect 1: Skin Rejuvenation

Exosomes have a skin-rejuvenating effect. Specifically, they may help address the following skin concerns.

  • Concerned about facial wrinkles and dark spots
  • Lack of firmness and radiance in the skin
  • Concerned about enlarged pores
  • Want to do something about areas of sagging on the body

Exosomes can increase collagen and elastin by penetrating fibroblasts in the dermal layer of the skin.
This gives the skin firmness and elasticity, improves its texture, and may help improve the skin.

Effect 2: Relieving Fatigue and Supporting Health

Exosomes may also help relieve fatigue.
When exosomes circulate throughout the body and activate cells, this may help with fatigue recovery.
In addition, the resulting activation of cells may improve the body's metabolism and help maintain good health.

Effect 3: Helps Prevent Skin Problems Such as Atopic Dermatitis

Exosomes may help prevent skin problems such as atopic dermatitis. Specifically, effects may be seen for the following symptoms.

  • Atopic dermatitis
  • Allergy-related inflammation
  • Acne
  • Dry or sensitive skin

Exosomes have anti-inflammatory and antioxidant properties.
Anti-inflammatory properties help calm inflammation that causes swelling and pain, while antioxidant properties protect the skin from the oxidative stress that causes cells to become oxidized due to factors such as ultraviolet rays.

They may also help regulate skin turnover, repair damaged cells, increase moisture retention, and improve the skin's barrier function.
Through these various functions, exosomes may help prevent a wide range of skin problems.

Effect 4: Provides Vitality to the Brain

Exosomes may help provide vitality to the brain. Specifically, effects may be expected for the following symptoms.

  • Brain rejuvenation and prevention of aging
  • Brain conditions such as Alzheimer's disease and stroke
  • Stress

As exosomes travel through the blood vessels and circulate throughout the body, they reach the brain and promote the repair and activation of damaged brain cells.
For this reason, they may provide vitality to the brain and help prevent brain diseases and increase resistance to stress.

Effect 5: A Wide Range of Effects, Including Hair Loss and Cancer Treatment

As exosomes travel throughout the body through the blood vessels, they may produce various effects throughout the body.

  • Hair loss and thinning hair
  • Diseases such as cancer
  • Post-COVID conditions
  • Tinnitus and dizziness
  • Boosting immunity
  • Menopausal disorders

As described above, the effects of exosomes are expected not only in beauty but also in the medical field.
For example, cancer treatment generally involves chemotherapy or radiation therapy. These treatments work by suppressing the growth of cancer cells and destroying them.
Exosomes, on the other hand, may boost immunity by activating cells, suppress the growth of cancer cells, and help prevent cancer cells from metastasizing.
Exosomes may produce greater effects when used in combination with conventional treatments.

Exosomes, which act on cells, are substances that can have a wide range of effects on the body.
This broad range of effects may be one reason they are chosen by many people despite their high cost.

Four Disadvantages of Exosome Drip Therapy

Four Disadvantages of Exosome Drip Therapy

Exosomes may provide various benefits to the body. However, it is also true that they have disadvantages.

Below, we explain four disadvantages of receiving Exosome Drip Therapy.

Disadvantage 1: High Cost

This applies to all methods of Exosome Therapy: because it is an elective treatment, it is not covered by insurance. Since the full cost is paid out of pocket, the treatment can be expensive.

Another reason for the high cost is that exosomes themselves are expensive.
Exosomes are substances contained in the culture supernatant produced by removing impurities from the culture medium used to culture stem cells.
The stem cells used for culturing may be derived from the umbilical cord, dental pulp, or adipose tissue. Among these, umbilical-cord-derived stem cells are produced from the umbilical cords of newborn babies, so the available amount is limited.
There are also many steps involved in producing exosomes. After stem cells are collected, they must be cultured, and the culture supernatant must be produced, requiring considerable time and effort. As a result, exosomes are expensive.

Although the effects of exosomes may be appealing, you may hesitate because of the cost. Since prices vary by clinic, we recommend contacting the clinic directly for details.

Disadvantage 2: Regular Visits Are Necessary

Regular visits are necessary to obtain greater effects from Exosome Drip Therapy.

For many people, it takes approximately two weeks to one month before they experience the effects, while some people may feel an effect after just one treatment.
However, the effects of exosomes are said to last approximately one month, so continued visits are necessary to experience the effects more fully.

Disadvantage 3: The Needle Stimulus May Be Difficult for People Who Dislike Blood Draws

Some people feel unwell when having blood drawn for a health checkup or other purposes.
This is relatively common among women. The phenomenon in which a person feels unwell during a blood draw is called a vasovagal response, in which fear of the blood-draw needle being inserted causes the person to feel unwell.

Because Exosome Drip Therapy takes approximately 30 minutes to one hour, people who dislike blood draws may find the stimulus from the IV needle uncomfortable.

If you feel unwell during a blood draw or IV drip, relaxing in a position such as lying down may help reduce the discomfort.
If you are concerned, please consult the clinic.

Disadvantage 4: You Will No Longer Be Able to Donate Blood

Please note that people who have received Exosome Therapy cannot donate blood.

Exosome Therapy uses human-derived stem cell culture supernatant, and the reason is that the safety of stem cell culture supernatant cannot currently be confirmed using existing testing methods.

Blood collected through donations whose safety cannot be confirmed cannot be transfused to others. People who regularly donate blood should take care and confirm with the clinic before receiving Exosome Therapy.

Two Side Effects of Exosome Drip Therapy

Here, we explain two possible side effects that may occur when receiving Exosome Drip Therapy.

Side Effect 1: Redness, Swelling, or Pain May Occur at the Treatment Site

After receiving Exosome Drip Therapy, temporary redness, swelling, or pain may occur at the treatment site.
In most cases, these symptoms subside quickly, so there is usually no need to worry.

However, if swelling or pain continues for an extended period, we recommend consulting a doctor so that appropriate treatment can be provided.

Side Effect 2: Anaphylactic Reactions May Rarely Occur

Although extremely rare, an allergic reaction may occur after receiving Exosome Drip Therapy.
In severe cases, symptoms such as vomiting, abdominal pain, or a drop in blood pressure due to an anaphylactic reaction cannot be ruled out.

Because each person's constitution is different, it is not possible to guarantee absolute safety with respect to medications.
If you have ever experienced an allergic reaction to an injection or have any concerns at all, please consult a doctor.

Exosome Drip Therapy Is a Treatment with Few Disadvantages

Exosome Drip Therapy is a treatment that may provide many benefits at the cellular level throughout the body, including not only beauty benefits but also fatigue recovery and disease prevention.

There may be some concerns, such as the cost, the time required for regular visits, and side effects such as swelling at the treatment site, so you may not feel completely free of anxiety.
However, Exosome Therapy has a high level of safety and offers many appealing benefits, including helping address concerns such as skin rejuvenation, health, and the prevention of skin problems.

Consult LIVELY CLINIC About Exosome Drip Therapy

Exosomes are substances that may have a variety of effects, including not only beauty benefits such as rejuvenation and the prevention of skin problems, but also AGA treatment, cancer treatment, and dementia prevention through the activation of brain cells.
When injected into the body, they travel through the blood vessels and spread throughout the body, so they may also help relieve fatigue and maintain overall health.
Because receiving treatment regularly may make it easier to experience its effects, we recommend choosing a clinic that suits you and continuing treatment there.

The greatest disadvantage of Exosome Therapy is that it is expensive, making it difficult to receive regularly.
At LIVELY CLINIC, initial Exosome Drip Therapy sessions are available from 29,800 yen including tax. We also offer course discounts to make it easier for patients to continue visiting us.

If you would like to receive Exosome Drip Therapy regularly but are concerned about the cost, please feel free to consult us.

Medically reviewed by

Masao Hayashi

Masao Hayashi

Career

  • 2017 Graduated from Tokyo Medical University
  • 2019 Joined the Department of Otolaryngology-Head and Neck Surgery, Tokyo Medical University
  • 2021 Aesthetic Surgery and Dermatology in Tokyo
  • 2023 THE CLINIC
  • 2024 LIVELY CLINIC