Dutasteride in Androgenetic Alopecia: An Update
March 2017
in “
Current Clinical Pharmacology
”
Studysummary In this review, the authors discuss the pharmacology of dutasteride and compare its efficacy to finasteride for treating androgenetic alopecia, highlighting dutasteride's effectiveness demonstrated in several clinical trials.
Our plain-language summary. Not medical advice or a treatment recommendation. Consult a qualified healthcare professional before changing treatment. Full disclaimer
The 2017 review titled "Dutasteride in Androgenetic Alopecia: An Update" discussed the role of dutasteride, a synthetic 4-azasteroid, in treating androgenetic alopecia, a common condition causing hair thinning. Dutasteride inhibits both type-1 and type-2 isoenzymes of 5-α-reductase, the enzyme responsible for converting testosterone to dihydrotestosterone, a more potent androgen causing hair loss. The review highlighted that dutasteride had shown effectiveness in several randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trials. The authors compared dutasteride's efficacy with finasteride, another approved drug for androgenetic alopecia. The conclusion was that dutasteride was becoming a popular treatment option due to its good response in various studies and meta-analysis. It was found to be better than finasteride with comparable side effects, suggesting that dutasteride could become a preferred treatment for androgenetic alopecia in the future.
