How effective is medication against hair loss?
Several medications have FDA approval for the treatment of androgenetic pattern hair loss. Minoxidil (brand name Rogaine) is a topical medicine for men and women that must be applied twice daily. Finasteride (Propecia) is a pill only for men to be taken once daily. These medications have limited effectiveness, slowing down or stopping altogether the progression of hair loss in the back of the head in less than two-thirds of all men. The only permanent remedy for hair loss is surgical hair restoration, or hair transplantation. What is hair transplantation? Hair transplantation involves transferring hairs from the back and side of the head (the “donor area”) to those areas undergoing hair loss or thinning. The hairs from the donor area are genetically programmed to be permanent. Once transplanted, these hairs will continue to grow for a lifetime for a permanent hair transplant. Today the state of the art procedure is follicular unit grafting, the only procedure Dr. Epstein performs.
Several medications have FDA approval for the treatment of androgenetic pattern hair loss. Minoxidil (brand name Rogaine) is a topical medicine for men and women that must be applied twice daily. Finasteride (Propecia) is a pill only for men to be taken once daily. These medications have limited effectiveness, slowing down or stopping altogether the progression of hair loss in the back of the head in less than two-thirds of all men. The only permanent remedy for hair loss is surgical hair restoration, or hair transplantation.
