Medicines for Alopecia…

Yes, you read it right! 

Seeing your hair fall all around while taking a shower, on your pillow, or your clothes can hurt. 

These are the reasons why you start to develop Alopecia. A situation when you start losing your scalp hair.

There are medications to help you treat the issue of Alopecia. 

If you go through the statistics by The Hair Society, 35 million men and 21 million women suffer from hair loss. 

Let’s focus on the most common medications for Alopecia. 

Medications for Alopecia

Alopecia medication to prevent hair loss
Alopecia medication to prevent hair loss

Different medicines have particular work to follow. Alopecia is one such issue that doesn’t have a particular medication. Although, there are medicines that help in the treatment of the same. 

Minoxidil

An FDA-approved medicine, which helps in the treatment of hair loss. It comes in the form of shampoo, foam, or liquid. 

It is a vasodilator medication known for sedating or stopping hair loss and promoting hair growth. 

Fact
Minoxidil was discovered to have the critical side-effect of increasing growth or darkening fine body hairs. 

This led to the development of a topical formulation. A 2% concentration solution treats female Androgenic Alopecia. Or 5% Androgenic Alopecia for treating males. 

Minoxidil is a Potassium channel opener that causes hyperpolarization of cell membranes. 

It is also a vasodilator; it is speculated that widening blood vessels and opening Potassium channels allow more blood, oxygen, and nutrients to the follicle. 

This can also cause the shedding of follicles in the Telogen phase. New and thicker hairs in a new anagen phase usually replace them. 

You may apply the product to the scalp’s skin. It is usually recommended once daily for women and twice daily for men. It is done for maintaining hair growth. 

Only irritant and allergic contact dermatitis on the scalp are the most common side effects of the topical formulation. 

Some people have had allergic reactions to inactive propylene glycol. It can be found in topical solutions, especially galenic ones.

Increased hair loss, which can occur during Minoxidil use, is due to the synchronization of the hair cycle that the treatment induces. 

This whole process is a six months therapy to prevent further hair loss and trip hair growth. 

It may take several months to tell whether the treatment works for you. Avoid quitting the medicine without consulting your doctor.  

Finasteride

Finasteride is an FDA-approved pharmacologic agent. It helps treat Androgenic Alopecia in men, also known as male pattern hair loss. 

Warning
Finasteride is a prescription drug primarily for men. 

It is available in the form of oral tablets. 

Men taking Finasteride experience slow hair loss, and some may show new hair growth. 

Product Purchase :
You can take Finpecia, which consists of Finasteride as an active ingredient for treating Male Pattern Baldness.

The therapy might take a few months to tell whether it’s working for you. Take it according to your doctor’s instructions to achieve the most benefits. 

Finasteride is an aggressive inhibitor of Types II and III 5-alpha-reductase isoenzyme, stopping Testosterone from changing into Dihydrotestosterone (DHT). Finasteride selects the Type I 5-alpha-reductase enzyme in a better way.

Sweat glands, sebaceous glands, dermal papillae cells, and epidermal and follicular keratinocytes have the Type I 5-alpha-reductase isomer. 

Type II is found in the epididymis, vas deferens, seminal vesicles, prostate, and outer root sheaths of hair follicles.

It has been found from the research; Finasteride reduces 90% of prostatic DHT levels by upwards. Whereas 70% serum DHT levels. 

However, increasing the dosage will not result in a more significant serum reduction. 

Finasteride does not make a 100% reduction of DHT while treating Androgenic Alopecia. In this case, hair loss is slowed down but not halted completely.

New alopecia drug

Alopecia drug
Alopecia drug

Baricitinib oral tablets have been developed by Eli Lilly and are now also approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA). It is known as the first systemic treatment for Alopecia Areata.

Moreover, it is seen that Baricitinib was the most effective after clinical trials. Patients with moderate to severe Alopecia Areata benefit the same. 

These patients have lost 30% more hair on their heads. This medication has turned out to be beneficial for people’s eyebrow and eyelash loss.

“We were one of the numerous sites across the U.S. and the world to participate in studies of Baricitinib,” says Natasha Mesinkovska, UCI Health dermatologist and principal investigator at UCI Health of a clinical trial for the medication.

Conclusion

Toward the end of this article, we understand that Minoxidil and Finasteride are the two medicines that will help treat Alopecia. 

Moreover, Finasteride is known explicitly for treating Male Pattern Baldness with regular medicine. 

Moreover, after seeing the severe issue of Alopecia and its spread, the FDA has also approved Baricitinib for treating Alopecia Areata.

Frequently Asked Questions

Which medicine is best for Alopecia?

Medicines like Minoxidil and Finasteride are best to use when treating Alopecia. Minoxidil comes from foam, liquid, and shampoo and can be taken without consulting doctors. Whereas, Finasteride is a prescription drug.

What is the new drug for Alopecia?

The food and Drug Administration of the U.S. has recently approved Baricitinib oral tablets for treating Alopecia Areata. 

Can Minoxidil cure Alopecia?

Topical Minoxidil Solutions can help induce hair regrowth in Alopecia Areata, although the condition is not completely curable.

Citations:WowRx uses only high-quality sources while writing our articles. Please read our content information policy to know more about how we keep our content reliable and trustworthy.
  • thehairsociety.org
  • ishrs.org
  • foodanddrugadministration.com