TLDR Vaniqa cream slows unwanted facial hair growth in women.
Eflornithine HCl 13.9% cream, marketed as Vaniqa, was the first topical prescription treatment approved by the US FDA for reducing unwanted facial hair in women. It worked by irreversibly inhibiting ornithine decarboxylase, an enzyme crucial for hair growth. Clinical trials showed that the cream slowed facial hair growth in up to 60% of women, with improvements observed over 4-8 weeks or longer. Most adverse reactions were minor skin irritations.
25 citations,
April 2015 in “Current problems in dermatology” Hair regrowth slows with age and can be affected by treatments that change enzyme activity in the skin.
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June 1999 in “Mechanisms of Development” The study demonstrated that ornithine decarboxylase (ODC) played a significant role in hair follicle development and hair growth by being associated with cell proliferation and commitment. ODC was expressed in embryonic epidermis at sites of follicle development and persisted in proliferating bulb cells of anagen follicles, except at the base of the bulb. Its expression decreased as follicles entered catagen and resumed with new follicle initiation. In vibrissae, ODC showed a complex expression pattern, being present in both the bulb and hair shaft, and in outer root sheath cells near the follicle bulge, suggesting a link to hair follicle stem cells.
