While topical solutions like Rogaine brand monoxidil have been wore to treat hair loss, Propecia brand Finasteride by Merck & Company, Inc. is the only FDA approved pill approved for the prevention of hair loss and possible hair re-growth. Like Rogaine , Propecia was found when its generic equivalent being wore for an additional purpose was uncovered to have beneficial side effects. Finasteride is the generic moniker for the drug, which was already in being for quite a select few time and had been produced under the moniker Proscar by Merck & Company and wore for coarse of action of enlarged prostates, a syndrome medically called benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH). BPH is induced by an overproduction of DHT, which causes the prostate to expand. Many BHP patients were also suffering with MPB, and when patients began taking Proscar , they found the re-growth of hair also. This sparked new testing and the birth of Propecia as a hair restoration drug. The approval of Propecia per FDA was simple to achieve, since it was just marketing already approved Finasteride as a hair restoration drug, with a much smaller dosage than that needed for BPH.

Propecia is being prescribed by doctors to a few patients as an oral coarse of action to internally block the production of DHT. Propecia is an androgen hormone inhibitor only approved for men, and has been clinically proven to expand hair on a important percentage of men who suffer with Male Pattern Baldness (MPB) or even even more properly androgenetic alopecia. Unfortunately, the drug has not been approved for utilize by women at this time. This is especially true for women who are pregnant or even can be pregnant, because the process of inhibiting testosterone from being converted to DHT can effect secondary sex characteristics of unborn fetuses.

Propecia works by reversing the shrinkage of hair follicles that are in the telogen phase, or even last phase of the normal hair cycle. Propecia works best in combination with topical treatments of Monoxidil like Rogaine . Participants in studies have seen hair expand in as little as 6 months, whereas those who have seen no results in a year s time are reported not likely to see any results from the drug. 1 around of testing of across two,000 men with androgenetic alopecia above a four-year period of time showed half with reported new hair expansion.

Side effects of Propecia in a couple persons studied include diminished sex drive, difficulty in achieving an erection, and a decreased sperm production. Side effects were uncovered in less than 3 % of participants in clinical studies. Fortunately when the drug s assume was discontinued, the side effects went away and normal functions resumed.  Of course there are a select few who say that the expansion of new hair is worth the cost of a drop in libido. Only you are able to decide whether this side effect is worth the private cost to you. Finasteride is metabolized primarily per liver, and so anyone suffering with liver disease are likely not to be able to take the drug, and should consult a physician. Additionally, as with Monoxidil, it can mask PSA levels, so caution should be wore if wore by patients with elevated PSA levels, as it can be hard to read levels properly when diagnosing potential prostate cancer. Of course proper consultation with your physician will help determine if taking Finasteride treatments like Propecia is right for you.

An interesting phenomena concerning Propecia is the significant rise in cost it induced for Finasteride when it entered the market as a hair restoration drug. Propecia is easily a 1mg version of Finasteride, a drug that was already being marketed as Proscar for BPH per equivalent company that markets Propecia , Merck & Company, Inc. So there shouldn’t be an increase of any kind in the cost of production of Finasteride, since it was just being marketed under a new moniker at a much smaller dosage. Merck & Company so was prepared to introduce Propecia at the cost of $1.twenty five per pill or even $37.fifty for a 30-day supply in 1998. In any case, after reconsiderations it was decided that Propecia would be introduced at $50 for a one-month supply. This is in comparison with a 30-day supply of Proscar which is 5mg Finasteride being marketed at $55-60.00 for a 30-day supply. The cost was adjusted to be in the range of Rogaine Additional Strength. The cost of Propecia today in 2004 is in the range of $130 for a 30-day supply, while Proscar prices have risen at a much slower pace, and is today less expensive than the equivalent Finasteride drug that is 1/5th the dosage. Doctors of course are discouraged by pharmaceutical corporations to prescribe Proscar for cosmetic coarse of action of androgenetic alopecia. Of course there are always going to be those who find ways to circumvent this. So, many have been driven to find ways to acquire Proscar and divide the pill into fourths or even fifths instead of paying the exorbitant prices for the extremely equivalent Finasteride.