Reduction of Diameter of Hair Shaft Among Women With Hirsutism

The study conducted at the Baghdad Teaching Hospital from July 2006 to January 2008 aimed to evaluate the effectiveness of spironolactone (aldactone) in treating women with hirsutism, either as a standalone treatment or in combination with oral contraceptive pills and/or metformin. The results showed a significant reduction in hair shaft diameter after 3 months of treatment, with a 44.49% reduction for spironolactone alone and 42.85% for spironolactone with oral contraceptive pills. After 6 months, the greatest reduction was seen in women taking spironolactone with oral contraceptive pills (60%), followed by spironolactone alone (52.49%), and spironolactone with metformin (51.2%). The combination of all three treatments resulted in the least reduction (37.5%). The study concluded that spironolactone, an antiandrogenic drug, effectively reduces the mean diameter of hair shafts in hirsute women, whether used alone or in combination with other treatments.