First Reboxetine Trial Results Reported
July 1997
in “
The Lancet
”
TLDR Finasteride increased hair count and regrowth in men with hair loss but also caused more sexual side effects than placebo.
In a study involving 1,879 men aged 18-41 years with stage II or higher androgenic alopecia, treatment with the oral medication finasteride for 12 months resulted in an average increase of 14.0 non-vellus hairs per cm² in the treated group, compared to a decrease of 2.3 hairs per cm² in the placebo group. Global scalp photography indicated that 9% of treated men experienced regrowth of hair, while baldness continued to worsen in 8% of the treated group. Side effects included decreased libido, which occurred in 1.8% of treated men compared to 1.3% in the placebo group, and erectile dysfunction, which was more common in the treatment group (1.3%) than in the placebo group (0.7%).