Minoxidil for Norwood scale 1 diffuse thinning and retrograde Alopecia

[Oshank]

Heyy, i am 22 and been noticing decrease in density of my hair for the past 3 years, so i consulted a dermatologist recently and she diagnosed norwood scale 1 baldness and suggested 1ml Minoxidil 5% once a day, will it be sufficient to reverse even some of the density loss, plus i am applying it on the sides because i feel i am losing density on sides too because i see a lot of thin hair above my ear, so i apply around 2ml total through out my scalp and sides once a day basically, is that okayy to do, how effective is minoxidil alone to gain back some density or thicken my hair,also do i have retrograde Alopecia? please help🙏

[Melvin- Admin]

Have you truest finasteride?

[Mycroft]

Minoxidil is basically a growth stimulant. It will help to lengthen and thicken shrinking hairs so their cosmetic value improves to be closer to what it once was, but if you aren't taking a DHT inhibitor like Finasteride you're basically just bailing water on a sinking ship.

Edit: You look like you've got a lot of hair still and are very early in the process. If you can take Finasteride without any issues you should absolutely start taking it immediately and add in Minoxidil after that if you want. You are catching it pretty early and are in a good position to save your hair.

Edited November 6, 2020 by Mycroft

[Mycroft]

Minoxidil is basically a growth stimulant. It will help to lengthen and thicken shrinking hairs so their cosmetic value improves to be closer to what it once was, but if you aren't taking a DHT inhibitor like Finasteride you're basically just bailing water on a sinking ship.

[TorontoMan]

You need to consider finasteride. It is the only thing that comes close to the underlying issue which is the dht in your body. Minoxidil works better if you’re already using finasteride 

[Oshank]

14 hours ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Have you truest finasteride?

 

8 hours ago, TorontoMan said:

You need to consider finasteride. It is the only thing that comes close to the underlying issue which is the dht in your body. Minoxidil works better if you’re already using finasteride 

 

14 hours ago, Mycroft said:

Minoxidil is basically a growth stimulant. It will help to lengthen and thicken shrinking hairs so their cosmetic value improves to be closer to what it once was, but if you aren't taking a DHT inhibitor like Finasteride you're basically just bailing water on a sinking ship.

 

14 hours ago, Mycroft said:

Minoxidil is basically a growth stimulant. It will help to lengthen and thicken shrinking hairs so their cosmetic value improves to be closer to what it once was, but if you aren't taking a DHT inhibitor like Finasteride you're basically just bailing water on a sinking ship.

Edit: You look like you've got a lot of hair still and are very early in the process. If you can take Finasteride without any issues you should absolutely start taking it immediately and add in Minoxidil after that if you want. You are catching it pretty early and are in a good position to save your hair.

I am worried about the sexual side effects of Finasteride, but i am considering Topical Finasteride something like Morr f10% , will that be fine to do, also do you guys think there is retrograde Alopecia there?

[Oshank]

14 hours ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Have you truest finasteride?

I didnt get you man, care to rephrase, thanks.

[Melvin- Admin]

1 hour ago, Oshank said:

I didnt get you man, care to rephrase, thanks.

Have you tried finasteride?

[Oshank]

16 minutes ago, Melvin-Moderator said:

Have you tried finasteride?

No sir i have not, i just went to a dermatologist she diagnosed me with grade 1,she prescribed Minoxidil and its been not even one full month of minoxidil use, haven't tried Finasteride.

Also i am really concerned about the plathora of possible side effects associated with it, but i have researched and found out that topical Finasteride poses even lower chances of side effects, there are a mixture serum of minoxidil and Finasteride present in my region called Minn f 10, i am considering using it, would you recommend it?

[Future Hair Doc]

The rate of side effects with finasteride is about 5%...so 1 in 20 people on it will have side effects. The sexual side effects aren't permanent so once you cause taking finasteride, the sexual side effects will cease. I would try finasteride 5mg oral daily or every other day and see how you react. If you're having side effects even when taking it every other day, I would switch to a topical solution of both minoxidil and finasteride as multiple studies have shown that the topical solution of these medications are effective in treating hair loss without systemic side effects.

I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions and keep us posted on your progress.

[TorontoMan]

5 minutes ago, Dr. Suhail Khokhar said:

The rate of side effects with finasteride is about 5%...so 1 in 20 people on it will have side effects. The sexual side effects aren't permanent so once you cause taking finasteride, the sexual side effects will cease. I would try finasteride 5mg oral daily or every other day and see how you react. If you're having side effects even when taking it every other day, I would switch to a topical solution of both minoxidil and finasteride as multiple studies have shown that the topical solution of these medications are effective in treating hair loss without systemic side effects.

I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions and keep us posted on your progress.

Why would you suggest 5mg? 

[Future Hair Doc]

4 minutes ago, TorontoMan said:

Why would you suggest 5mg? 

Great question. That's just the standard dose used and as everyone knows, finasteride is typically used for BPH and is given in 5mg doses. You can do 2.5mg as well in case you're having any side effects. I wouldn't use more than 5mg since it can cause orthostatic hypotension and syncope. 

[TorontoMan]

5 minutes ago, Dr. Suhail Khokhar said:

Great question. That's just the standard dose used and as everyone knows, finasteride is typically used for BPH and is given in 5mg doses. You can do 2.5mg as well in case you're having any side effects. I wouldn't use more than 5mg since it can cause orthostatic hypotension and syncope. 

Standard dose for hair loss is 1mg and this is because the research shows diminishing effects beyond that amount of reduction of dht in the scalp. Going up to 5mg would be increasing the dose to a factor of 5 while creating little or no additional benefit Towards MPB. 

 

someone correct me if I’m wrong please 

[Future Hair Doc]

16 minutes ago, TorontoMan said:

Standard dose for hair loss is 1mg and this is because the research shows diminishing effects beyond that amount of reduction of dht in the scalp. Going up to 5mg would be increasing the dose to a factor of 5 while creating little or no additional benefit Towards MPB. 

 

someone correct me if I’m wrong please 

Yes, you're correct. STARTING dose is 1mg and you can titrate it UP to 5mg, which is the standard dose for BPH. I would only titrate it up if the patient doesn't respond well to 1mg and isn't having any side effects. For titration, the doses are usually 1mg starting, then 2.5mg, then 5mg. But you could modify that using pill cutters.

I have not seen any studies that show that it loses efficacy with higher doses than 1mg. That doesn't make sense from a biochemistry standpoint since you're decreasing the conversion of testosterone to DHT by blocking 5-alpha reductase. Yes, you may have diminishing effects, but someone may still want a 30% increase in hair thickness/volume/etc and opt to increase their dose of finasteride given no side effects. Can you please send me those studies?

Here is a study looking at efficacy of finasteride 5mg daily and it's efficacy:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3746222/

Edited November 8, 2020 by Dr. Suhail Khokhar

[Britanium]

2 minutes ago, Dr. Suhail Khokhar said:

Yes, you're correct. STARTING dose is 1mg and you can titrate it UP to 5mg, which is the standard dose for BPH. I would only titrate it up if the patient doesn't respond well to 1mg and isn't having any side effects. For titration, the doses are usually 1mg starting, then 2.5mg, then 5mg. But you could modify that using pill cutters.

I have not seen any studies that show that it loses efficacy with higher doses than 1mg. That doesn't make sense from a biochemistry standpoint since you're decreasing the conversion of testosterone to DHT by blocking 5-alpha reductase. Yes, you may have diminishing effects, but someone may still want a say a 30% increase in hair thickness/volume/etc and opt to increase their dose of finasteride given no side effects. Can you please send me those studies?

Here is a study looking at efficacy of finasteride 5mg daily and it's efficacy:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3746222/

That’s a study for postmenopausal women.? Can you link a more relevant study.

 

[Britanium]

Every study I have seen shows that 1mg is the optimal dose. examples:
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0022202X15529357

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3481923/

https://www.hgspecialist.com/resources/product-files/files/Finasteride-10-year-follow-up.pdf

 

Edited November 8, 2020 by JohnAC71

[ciaus]

Merck is the company that initially developed finasteride, they called the 5mg formula Proscar for prostate issues. And later they tested and patented the lower 1mg dosage called Propecia too for hair loss.

For years guys have been pill cutting the 5mg pills into 4s to get 1.25mg dosages a day to save money, a whole lot of money back when Propecia was still on patent. And even still today relatively speaking 5mg pills are much cheaper than 1mg. I started doing this over the summer.

I wouldn't advise going over the 1.25mg dosage cutting 5mg pills, especially if you are already very worried about possible side effects. You're more likely to psyche yourself out into mimicking side effect symptoms. And in the cases of these people already psychologically suggestive to manufacturing symptoms I would start off no higher than the 1mg pills, consider pill cutting later if you are interesting in that after you confirm you can handle the 1mg.

Edited November 9, 2020 by ciaus

[Oshank]

7 hours ago, Dr. Suhail Khokhar said:

The rate of side effects with finasteride is about 5%...so 1 in 20 people on it will have side effects. The sexual side effects aren't permanent so once you cause taking finasteride, the sexual side effects will cease. I would try finasteride 5mg oral daily or every other day and see how you react. If you're having side effects even when taking it every other day, I would switch to a topical solution of both minoxidil and finasteride as multiple studies have shown that the topical solution of these medications are effective in treating hair loss without systemic side effects.

I hope this helps. Please let me know if you have any other questions and keep us posted on your progress.

Will there be any problem if i start directly with the minoxidil and finasteride topical solution, if they are equally effective as oral finasteride and i am already using minoxidil, is that a good way to go?

[Future Hair Doc]

Topical finasteride usually won't be as effective as oral finasteride since oral is systemic and topical is more localized and you have to depend on the diffusion of the topical solutions across various membranes to get into the target hair follicles. Topical finasteride is still effective and there are a lot of studies that demonstrate this. It'll all depend on the concentration of the finasteride and the delivery mechanism and how sensitive your hair follicles are to DHT. My advise is to start off with 1mg of oral finasteride and see how you react to that. As always, please feel free to reach out. 

[duchaine]

5mg is the standard dose for castration.

5mg is used in patients with severe prostate problems.

please, stop giving meaningless advice (especially considering they are not bavked from any evidence) because it can be very harmful.