Loading ...Propecia is a drug prescribed for treating male pattern baldness. Manufactured by Merck, Propecia is the first hair loss drug made as a pill. The sale for this drug, with generic name finasteride, began in December 1997. Propecia is also popular by another brand name, Proscar.
About male pattern baldness:
Thinning of hair on the scalp is a very common condition and found in people of almost all age groups. This condition, typically in men, leads to balding or receding of the hairline on head. Clinical studies clearly state that men undertaking Propecia hair loss treatment have re-grown their lost hair after a year from the time the drug is administered. It means that this medicine requires long term administration. Doctors and researchers since time have believed that male pattern hair loss is related to hereditary and usually hormones are responsible to cause this change. This is often referred as androgenetic alopecia.
Propecia: drug facts
Some clinical and non-clinical facts about Propecia have been put below:
- Propecia should be taken exactly the way your healthcare expert has prescribed. Taking in doses more than prescribed and for durations longer than advised can prove harmful.
- It is advised to take the drug with a glass full of water.
- It’s advised to take this medicine at the same time, daily.
- Patients need to continue the medicine for three months before any visual effect can be seen. Also, if taking the drug for a full year has not brought any results, there’s no point in continuing the use of it.
- Just to ensure that no harmful effects occur, regular blood testing for PSA or prostate specific antigen is advised.
- Propecia is shown to interact with 14 drugs, out of which 13 are moderate interactions and 1 is minor.
- This drug has known to block conversion of testosterone to DHT dihydrotestosterone in males. Thus leading to many undesirable sexual problems.
- Propecia is prescribed for treating male pattern baldness, so women and children are not advised to take it.
- Finasteride, the active ingredient in Propecia can be absorbed by the skin of women and children. So, they must not be allowed to handle this without covering their skin.
Propecia linked pregnancy warning:
Propecia is intended for use in males, but women who are exposed to this medication during pregnancy are at risk of developing birth defects in the developing fetus. The tablets are coated and this prevents any contact, but crushed or broken tablets can be easily absorbed and expecting women should never handle such tablets. Also, if contact occurs accidentally, the area should be thoroughly washed with soap and water.
Safety instructions:
- Before taking Propecia healthcare expert should be made aware about complete medical history of the individual. The doctor must be informed about any allergic response to finasteride or related drugs.
- Males administering Propecia are at higher risk of developing prostate cancer. Regular tests that can screen this are thus undertaken.
- Males taking Propecia must inform their doctor immediately in case they feel any pain in breast, lumps, discharge from the nipple or other unusual changes in breasts. These can be the early signs of breast cancer in males.
