Androgenetic Alopecia in Males: Recent Developments

The document from 1989 reviewed the condition of male-pattern baldness, also known as androgenetic alopecia (AA). It described AA as a physiological process, with some known reactions and substrates involved in androgen metabolism. However, the reason why the androgen stimulus led to retrograde transformation of hair follicles only in the skin of the parieto-occipital scalp remained unclear. At the time, there were no specific antiandrogens available for treating AA, either for topical application or systemic administration. The use of Minoxidil was noted to have a positive effect in treating AA, but the cosmetic result was often unsatisfactory.