Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Male-Pattern and Female-Pattern Hair Loss, 2017 Version

June 2018 in “ Journal of Dermatology ”

Motomu Manabe, Ryoji Tsuboi, Satoshi Itami, Shin-Ichi Osada, Yasuyuki Amoh, Toshimitsu Ito, Shigeki Inui, Rie Ueki, Manabu Ohyama, Sotaro Kurata, Takeshi Kono, Norimitsu Saito, Akio Sato, Yutaka Shimomura, Motonobu Nakamura, Hiroshi Narusawa, Masashi Yamazaki

From the encyclopedia

Finasteride →

Frontline, gold standard treatment for combatting androgenic alopecia

Dutasteride →

Heavy duty finasteride that comes with higher risks

Minoxidil →

An essential vasodilator with some anti-androgenic effects

Studysummary This article updates Japanese guidelines for diagnosing and treating male and female-pattern hair loss, recommending specific drugs and therapies while advising against certain treatments for female-pattern hair loss. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.

The 2017 Guidelines for the Diagnosis and Treatment of Male-Pattern and Female-Pattern Hair Loss recommend finasteride, dutasteride, and minoxidil as first-line treatments for MPHL and FPHL. The guidelines provide recommendations and grades of recommendation for each treatment option, including oral medication, topical applications, hair transplantation, and wearing a wig. The guidelines also discuss the effectiveness of various hair growth agents, LED and low-level laser irradiation, and topical adenosine. The use of growth factors, cell transplantation therapy, and oral minoxidil is not recommended due to insufficient evidence of their safety and effectiveness.

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118 citations , April 1998 in “Dermatologic Clinics”

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23 citations , July 1988 in “International Journal of Dermatology”

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