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What is Propecia?

Propecia (a brand name for finasteride) is a prescription medicine used for the treatment of male-pattern baldness. Male-pattern baldness is a hereditary condition caused by an excess of hormones called androgens. Propecia works by decreasing the production of these hormones.

In studies, Propecia stopped hair loss and caused some hair to re-grow in up to 48 percent of men with hair loss at the top of the head or at the back and middle part of the scalp when treated for 12 months. At 24 months, 66 percent of men reported improvement.

Propecia does not work for everyone. You may need to use Propecia daily for three months or longer before you see an obvious change in hair loss. It may take up to six months before hair grows back. If you’re using the drug and see no effect within 12 months, the drug will probably not work for you.

Doctors usually recommend taking 1 mg of Propecia daily with or without meals. You must continue to use Propecia to maintain the newly grown hair. If you stop treatment, your hair will return to its pre-treatment pattern within 12 months.

Children or women should not use Propecia. Women who are pregnant or those who may become pregnant should not handle broken or crushed Propecia tablets because there is a risk of birth defects in male babies.

Sources:
Micromedex® Healthcare Series. Thomson Micromedex, 2006.
Propecia product information, Merck & Co. Inc., 2006.
McClellan, K.J. "Finasteride: A Review of Its Use in Male Pattern Hair Loss," Drugs. 57, 1999.
Price, V.H. " Drug Therapy: Treatment of Hair Loss," The New England Journal of Medicine. 341 (1999).
Sawaya M.E. " Androgenetic alopecia. New approved and unapproved treatments." Dermatologic Clinics. 18 (2000)
Kaufman, K.D.Leyden, J. "Finasteride in the treatment of men with frontal male pattern hair loss," Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. 40 (1999).
Drug Facts and Comparisons. Facts & Comparisons, 2006.