By Heather Lindsey
While Propecia (finasteride 1 mg) and Rogaine (minoxidil 2% and 5%) are the only available US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)-approved drugs for hair loss, some doctors are finding that other, non-approved medications can be useful options for treating hair loss.
"Dermatologists often write off-label prescriptions to help patients," said Ken Washenik, MD, PhD, medical director of BOSLEY, a hair restoration clinic in Beverly Hills, California. Off-label treatments for hair loss include Proscar (finasteride 5 mg) and Avodart (dutasteride 0.5 mg), approved to treat prostate enlargement (symptomatic benign prostatic hyperplasia); Aldactone (spironolactone), a weak diuretic ("water pill") approved for congestive heart failure; and Retin-A (tretinoin), a topical acne medication, prescribed in combination with Rogaine.
Proscar
Proscar, approved to treat prostate enlargement, and Propecia, which is FDA-approved to treat hair loss, are actually different strengths of the same drug: finasteride. Finasteride slows hair loss by blocking the conversion of testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT), which has been definitively linked to baldness in genetically susceptible men.
Testosterone is normally converted into DHT by two types (type 1 and type 2) of the enzyme 5-alpha reductase. Finasteride works by inhibiting the type 2 form of the enzyme, the type that is concentrated in hair follicles.
Proscar is essentially a higher dose of Propecia.
Copyright 2009 NBC Health
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