Hair Loss: Advances and Treatments

This review article provides an updated overview of the pharmacology, mechanism of action, clinical efficacy, and adverse events associated with topical minoxidil, a widely used treatment for androgenetic alopecia and other hair loss conditions, while noting that its exact mechanism is still not fully understood.

This study found that a topical combination of 0.25% finasteride and 3% minoxidil may increase hair diameter more effectively than 3% minoxidil alone in postmenopausal women with female pattern hair loss.

This meta-analysis reported that platelet-rich plasma injections for androgenetic alopecia may increase hair number and thickness locally, but further studies are needed to establish their overall effectiveness.

This review discusses the current evidence and highlights gaps in research needed for the wider acceptance of low-level laser therapy as a treatment for hair loss; no new clinical results are provided.

This study concluded that 5α-reductase inhibitors were linked to increased sexual dysfunction in men with benign prostatic hyperplasia, but not in men with androgenetic alopecia.

This study found that applying a novel 0.25% finasteride solution to the scalp can effectively reduce scalp DHT levels in men with androgenetic alopecia, potentially reducing systemic side-effects.

This study found that platelet-rich plasma injections significantly increased hair count and density in patients with male pattern hair loss without major side effects, suggesting it may be a safe and effective treatment option.

This study found that low-level laser therapy significantly increased hair growth in women with androgenic alopecia, achieving a 37% greater increase in hair counts compared to placebo.

This study found that low-level laser treatment with the HairMax Lasercomb significantly increased terminal hair density in both men and women with pattern hair loss, with no serious adverse events reported.

This study reported that AA-PRP injections significantly increased hair count and density in individuals with pattern hair loss compared to baseline, demonstrating their potential for enhancing hair growth.

This review discusses the potential mechanisms and evidence supporting low-level laser therapy for stimulating hair growth in men and women, while noting its safety and effectiveness but needing further study on specific parameters.

In this study, platelet-rich plasma significantly increased hair regrowth and reduced symptoms of alopecia areata compared to triamcinolone acetonide or placebo, with no observed side effects.

This review discusses the applications of low level laser therapy (LLLT) in wound healing, pain reduction, and treating various conditions, but reports no new clinical results; the authors highlight the need for randomized controlled trials for serious diseases.

This study found that a once-daily 5% minoxidil topical foam is as effective as a twice-daily 2% minoxidil topical solution for hair growth in women with androgenetic alopecia, with fewer side effects and greater styling convenience.

This review discusses persistent adverse effects of 5α‐reductase inhibitors, like diminished libido and erectile dysfunction, in some patients and highlights the need for patient discussions before therapy, especially for androgenetic alopecia.

This paper discusses spironolactone as a potential off-label treatment for female pattern hair loss, noting its ability to halt hair loss progression and induce partial regrowth in a significant number of women but reports no new clinical results.

In this study, treatment with finasteride 1 mg/day for five years significantly reduced the likelihood of further visible hair loss in men with androgenetic alopecia compared to placebo.

This study found that a new 5% minoxidil foam formulation significantly increased hair counts and improved hair loss condition in men with androgenetic alopecia over 16 weeks compared to placebo.

In this study, patients informed about finasteride's potential sexual side effects reported a significantly higher occurrence of these side effects, suggesting a nocebo effect.

This preliminary study suggests that finasteride might cause depressive symptoms, indicating the need for cautious prescription in patients at high risk for depression.

In this 48-week trial, 5% topical minoxidil was more effective than both 2% minoxidil and placebo in promoting hair growth in women with female pattern hair loss, with notable improvements in nonvellus hair count and hair growth assessments.

This article reviews the mechanisms by which minoxidil stimulates hair growth and reports no new clinical findings.

This study found that 5% topical minoxidil significantly increased hair regrowth and improved psychosocial perceptions of hair loss in men with androgenetic alopecia compared to 2% topical minoxidil and placebo over 48 weeks.

This article discusses the treatment of androgenetic alopecia and alopecia areata with finasteride and minoxidil but reports no new clinical results.

This study reported that finasteride 1 mg/day significantly increased hair growth and slowed hair loss in men with frontal scalp hair thinning over one year, and these benefits continued or improved in the second year.

In male pattern hair loss, this study found that finasteride 1 mg daily significantly slowed hair loss and increased hair growth over two years compared to placebo.

This study found that minoxidil significantly increases VEGF mRNA and protein expression in dermal papilla cells, suggesting a role in enhancing hair follicle vascularization in androgenetic alopecia.

This study found that 4 weeks of finasteride treatment significantly decreased DHT levels in bald scalp to levels similar to hair-containing scalp in men with male pattern baldness.

Minoxidil promotes hair growth but stops working when discontinued.

This study found that twice-daily application of 3% topical minoxidil maintained a higher nonvellus hair count compared to once-daily application over 2 years and 9 months in men with male pattern baldness.