TLDR Taking dutasteride every other day works as well as daily and better preserves sexual function.
This study on 300 patients with benign prostatic enlargement (BPE) and lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) found that administering dutasteride every other day, in combination with tamsulosin, was as effective as daily dosing in reducing prostate size while better preserving sexual function. In contrast, weekly dosing did not significantly reduce prostate size but did improve sexual function. Thus, alternate-day dosing of dutasteride offers similar therapeutic benefits with fewer sexual side effects compared to daily dosing.
11 citations
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April 2018 in “Journal of Dermatology” Dutasteride safely treats hair loss without harming sexual function.
15 citations
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January 2018 in “Acta dermato-venereologica” Finasteride and dutasteride increase sexual dysfunction risk by 1.57 times in male hair loss treatment.
66 citations
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April 2017 in “International Journal of Andrology” Men taking 5α-reductase inhibitors for enlarged prostate have a higher chance of experiencing reduced sexual desire and erectile dysfunction.
44 citations
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April 2015 in “PubMed” Finasteride for hair loss may cause long-lasting side effects like impotence and low libido, but trials lack proper safety reporting.
97 citations
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January 2014 in “Journal of The American Academy of Dermatology” Dutasteride 0.5 mg works better than finasteride and placebo for increasing hair in men with hair loss.
13 citations
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November 2012 in “PubMed” 5α-reductase inhibitors may worsen sexual drive and spontaneous erections but don't worsen existing erectile or ejaculatory problems.
223 citations
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December 2010 in “The Journal of Sexual Medicine” Some patients taking finasteride or dutasteride may have ongoing sexual problems and depression even after stopping the medication.
