![Finasteride – 5a-Reductase Inhibitor [5-ARIs]](https://eugenixhairsciences.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/07/Finasteride.png "Finasteride – 5a-Reductase Inhibitor [5-ARIs]")
Tell us a patient who is aware of a hair transplant and is not aware of Finasteride for hair loss. We bet you cannot. It is well-known medicine for those who wish to treat their baldness issue. This oral medicine is considered a boon in the world of hair restoration.
How Finasteride Was Discovered?
It is bizarre but it is a fact that the discovery of Finasteride was accidental. In a medication marketed as Proscar, the active ingredient in finasteride was initially intended to treat the symptoms and indications of benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) or enlarged prostate gland.
But the magic of finasteride was seen in the male patients. They notice a reversal of the miniaturization of hair. Also, new hair follicles were noticed on their bald head. This way finasteride was used for treating male pattern baldness as well.
History Of Finasteride
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved finasteride (5 mg) for the treatment of BPH in 1992, and Merck sold it under the trade name Proscar. Finasteride (1 mg), which was sold under the trade name Propecia, was given FDA clearance in 1997 for a second prescription for the treatment of men’s pattern hair loss. Dutasteride was released in 2001 after it was the second 5 alpha-reductase inhibitor. In 1994, a study on the use of finasteride to treat female hirsutism was published.
How Finasteride Works?
Finasteride basically stops the miniaturization of scalp hair. There is an enzyme called 5 alpha reductase which converts testosterone to dihydrotestosterone (DHT). This is a male sex hormone that is responsible for baldness. Finasteride stops the production of this particular hormone.
Duration To Take Finasteride 1mg Or 5mg
The answer to this question is quite simple. You need to take this oral medicine as long as you want hair on your scalp. In short, once you start taking this medicine, you need to take it lifelong.
Finasteride Can Reduce Your Hair Transplant Bill
If you will choose the right clinic and the right doctor who will not adopt a commercial approach for your hair transplant, then certainly finasteride can reduce your hair transplant bill. Once you go for a hair transplant, your doctor will assess the graft counts required by your scalp. He might ask you to be on medicine for a particular time. This medication can improve your donor area and even your recipient area. This improvement will evidently reduce the number of grafts required for the transplant. This is the magic of finasteride, it can even reduce your bill by lowering the number of grafts required.
Disadvantages Of Not Taking
When you quit consuming finasteride, the amount of the drug that is still active in your body gradually decreases until it is fully eliminated within a few days.
When finasteride is eliminated from your system, the 5a-Reductase enzyme will not be inhibited, allowing your body to once again begin converting a little amount of testosterone into Dihydrotestosterone (DHT).
If you have a hereditary predisposition to baldness, this could mean that the Dihydrotestosterone (DHT) will once more start to impact your hair follicles, causing hair loss on your scalp, a receding hairline, and other symptoms of baldness. In case you are wondering about finasteride side effects, refer entire article on our blog about the same.
Dr. Arika Bansal
One of only a few female surgeons specializing in hair transplant surgery in India, Dr. Arika Bansal has been voted one of the best doctors in the world. She maintains an active membership in the ISHRS and regularly submits research papers to medical journals. 15+ years down the line, 15,000+ surgeries are accomplished under Dr. Bansal’s supervision. She specializes in female hair transplant, density improvement, corrective hair transplantation and hairline design.
