Hair Loss
Cosmetic
Rogers Medical
Rogers Medical Group
What are my options?
There are no magic solutions to hair restoration, but there are a variety of techniques that work, all of which are discussed here. Using the information here, you can make the decision that suits you best. We offer all these treatments, enabling us to truly tailor the treatment to suit your needs and aspirations.
Medication
Propecia
Propecia is currently the most effective licensed drug for treating hair loss. It slows, stops or regrows hair in 88% of men. Of these, 37% experience regrowth.
The chemical name for Propecia is Finasteride, and it has been used in hair loss treatment for more than ten years. It needs to be used for at least a year before you can know for sure whether it’s working, although some people will see an improvement before this time. Sometimes, positive results are achieved in as little as three months.
The longer it is used, the better. In each year after the first twelve months, there continues to be a 2-3% improvement until a plateau is reached after five years.
However, 80-90% of the best achievable result will be reached within 12-18 months of starting the programme.
Is Finasteride safe?
Finasteride is known to be a very safe drug and is highly unlikely to interact with any other commonly taken drugs, including alcohol, antibiotics, painkillers or even some ‘recreational’ drugs. Although there are no long-term studies showing serious side effects, Finasteride has been used very safely for twenty years as a 5mg tablet in treating prostate disease.
How does Finasteride work?
Finasteride works by ‘blocking’ the action of 5 Alpha 1 reductase, which is an enzyme that makes dihydrotestosterone (DHT) from testosterone (see causes of hair loss). Only scalp hair responds to Propecia.
“I have taken it for 11 years with no side effects, but have achieved slight regrowth of frontal hair and crown hair and definitely arrested the ongoing hair loss.” - Dr Rogers.
Dutasteride
Dutasteride is a tablet that is still undergoing trials in many countries, including the UK, and is not yet licensed for hair loss, although it is licensed for the treatment of prostate disease. There is much ongoing debate across the internet about its effectiveness. Results so far seem to suggest that it is 10% more effective than Propecia, but this is yet to be backed up by credible independent research. You may be willing to accept the risks of trying Dutasteride. However, with any new medication, we may not have full knowledge of any long-term side effects.
Minoxidil (Regaine) Solution
Minoxidil was used initially in the treatment of high blood pressure, and has achieved some modest results in promoting scalp hair growth. However, a side effect of this is increased hair growth across the whole body, not just scalp hair. This does not appear to be a problem when Minoxidil is used in solution rather than tablet form. Unfortunately, Minoxidil is not very effective. Users can see some benefit from reduced hair loss and even some regrowth, but most of the hair tends to remain fine, wispy and pale. The solution also tends to cause skin irritation. However, Minoxidil is readily available and can be more effective when used with Propecia. The two drugs work in different but complementary ways.
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For other available options try:
Surgery Surgery
There are no magic solutions to hair restoration but there are a variety of techniques that work. We aim to give you the information so that you can make the decision that suits you.
Hair pieces Hair pieces
For some people, hair pieces can be the best choice i.e. poor hair transplantation candidates, alopecia areata patients or a medical condition preventing surgery.
Camouflage Camouflage
Camouflage products can be very useful, particularly for thinning hair.