1mg oral VS 0.1% topical VS 0.25% topical VS 1% gel

[alopie]

The studies for topical finasteride are pretty limited, and cover very short periods of time (2-week dht differences)
I am wondering if there are people in this forum that have experience with both topical and oral and what they think the optimal concentration is, compared to 1mg oral daily.

I switched to topical 0.1%, but I am concerned that it's not enough. Think about minoxidil of 5% topical being weaker than 1mg oral...

[A_4_Archan]

Topical treatments may not match the potency of oral medications, but they offer a safer option. If you experience side effects with oral medication, switching to topicals is an alternative. However, if your body handles oral medication well, it's advisable to stick with that. Personally, I've tried both and found that oral medication delivers more effective results for me.

Just increasing dosage in topicals won't give any extra benefit.

[alopie]

51 minutes ago, A_4_Archan said:

Topical treatments may not match the potency of oral medications, but they offer a safer option. If you experience side effects with oral medication, switching to topicals is an alternative. However, if your body handles oral medication well, it's advisable to stick with that. Personally, I've tried both and found that oral medication delivers more effective results for me.

Just increasing dosage in topicals won't give any extra benefit.

Topical application depends on the agents, concentration and way of application. It is nearly impossible to apply 1ml equally distributed on the scalp, but the oral one is always the same.

Long term hormone modification does not sound safe though... what do people do after 10 years, or when finasteride is no longer as effective?

[A_4_Archan]

21 minutes ago, alopie said:

Topical application depends on the agents, concentration and way of application. It is nearly impossible to apply 1ml equally distributed on the scalp, but the oral one is always the same.

Long term hormone modification does not sound safe though... what do people do after 10 years, or when finasteride is no longer as effective?

The application is difficult and there are other factors which hinders the efficacy of topicals and that's why it is not as potent as oral ones

There are many people who are on finasteride since 10 and even more years and effectively preserving their hair without any side effects and there are some people who cannot even tolerate this for 10 days...so it depends on individual's physiology...

There can be modification in dosage if its not/less effective after a certain period or there is an option of adding dutasteride to the regime...

But there is no one thing fits for everyone when it comes to medication.

[SoSoz]

Topical is nonsense that's what I heard from my dermatologist. He said it will accumulate in your body like oral does over time and will result in same side effects if there are any.

[alopie]

On 12/23/2023 at 3:04 PM, SoSoz said:

Topical is nonsense that's what I heard from my dermatologist. He said it will accumulate in your body like oral does over time and will result in same side effects if there are any.

In what sense is this nonsense? If it accumulates then it should be as good as the oral one regarding DHT inhibition. If not, then it should be safer, but it would not be prescribed by dr. Zarev if it was nonsense.