Hi Dr.
I have a question for you. Why does Rogaine sell a Women’s version, and a Men’s version, Why couldn’t I use the womens version if they have both have minoxodil in them?????

Thank you

Yes, you could use the “for women” version if you wanted to.

• Rogaine for Men contains 5% minoxidil, less alcohol and more propylene glycol than the Women’s Rogaine.
• Rogaine for Women contains 2% minoxidil, more alcohol and less propylene glycol than the Rogaine for Men.

Propylene glycol is found in many products, and you can learn more about that here.

Hello Dr. Rassman,

This is without a doubt the best hair loss site on the web. I have learnt a lot over the last year or so. I really hope you can find the time to answer my questions.

I am 28 and have noticed that my hairline has receded on either side of the widows peak and even the widows peak looks thinner and see through now than it did 3-4 years ago (when I believe the changes started). I can feel my hair has thinned in a norwood 3a pattern although this is not noticable to others yet.

My question is regarding propecia. I have tried to take it but no matter how little a dose I tried I had the same side effects (low libido and erectile dysfunction). I tried 1mg daily, 0.5mg daily, 0.5mg every other day and 0.25mg daily but just could not adjust to it. What would be your suggestion for me and others in my situation as I would really like to try and combat the hair loss? I have been using minoxidil but is there anything else I can do as I really can’t handle propecia?

Also with regard to balding patterns you have said that the final balding patterns become evident for young men that start losing their hair early but as mine started at 24-25 when would you expect my final pattern to be evident as it is not obvious yet but I can only guess at a Norwood 3a as the hair still feels very thick past this point?

I would really appreciate if you could take the time to answer my questions. Thanks

Compliments will get you a long way with me, but not long enough to solve your Propecia (finasteride) problem. While I don’t know how long you were on the medication before each of your dosing changes, you could just be one of the men who just can’t tolerate even a small dose. Minoxidil is likely your only other option, aside from perhaps a hair transplant. You indicated that you’re in the UK, so I’d get yourself followed by a good doctor like Dr. Bessam Farjo, who is located in your area.

It’s really difficult to say when your final pattern would be evident without any real history to look back on. Unfortunately, I can’t give you any kind of realistic estimate on when your hair loss will stop.

Dear Doctor,

I just wanted to know if there is any point of taking 5mg proscar for hairloss? From my research I think the answer is no but I have taken 5mg for last 6 weeks. I have noticed a lack of motivation and being a bit down but I am not exactly sure if they are related to taking the 5mg or due to other things in my life. Could there be any side effects for taking for the 5mg for the past 6 weeks? If I just cut down to the quarter Proscar tablet (1.25mg) will my body take long to readjust after having taking 5mg dosage?

Thanks you for your time,

Kind regards

There is no point in taking finasteride 5mg (Proscar) for treating hair loss. Aside from the increased side effect possibility, it will not work any better for hair loss. I really cannot comment on your lack of motivation and its relation to the medication. Maybe you have the holiday blues? Side effects from medications should generally reverse in about a week or two.

Doctor,

There is an established correlation between (early onset) androgenic alopecia and both cardiovascular disease and prostate cancer. Now interestingly, Propecia (more than likely) reduces the risk of prostate cancer. Since Propecia seems helpful against hair loss and against prostate cancer, could it also be helpful against the third correlate: cardiovascular disease?

At least some studies seem to consider DHT to be proatherogenic while others consider estradiol to be antiatherogenic (in men). Given the fact balding men carry an extra cardiovascular risk and prostate cancer risk, could finasteride not only reduce the risk of prostate cancer but work cardioprotective as well in this population? Unfortunately I did not find much empirical data (only one study – PMID: 12234510 – reporting a non-significant RR of 0.3). How plausible do you consider finasteride to be helpful in reducing the added CVD risk in balding (young) men?

A valid and interesting point. I honestly don’t know how plausible it is, but it is certainly a refreshing perspective from a sea of anti-Propecia campaigns and the paranoia of its side effects that I’ve been receiving via email lately.

Medications are not magic bullets. They have limitations and might not always work the way we think they should work, but there may be benefits as well as detriments (for those anti-Propecia fans) still undiscovered. After all, Propecia was an accidental discovery, but there is clearly a need to study the connection between heart disease on those men taking Propecia. Considering that many men on Propecia are young, the number of people needed for a valid study may be very high.

(female) Can I use Rogaine on my eyelashes? I know it has not been tested on eyelashes, but do the ingredients seem harmful, or simply not yet approved for that purpose? Also, what about using Rogaine on my eyebrows?

Rogaine (minoxidil) is an irritant and if you use it around the eye and accidentally get it into the eye, you could be in for problems. I would think that the use of minoxidil in any form would not be a good thing to do for eyelashes. The new eyelash growth medication is Latisse (bimatoprost).

I know some patients have tried minoxidil on their eyebrows with mixed results. Just note that minoxidil isn’t recommended for anywhere other than the scalp, so be cautious if you do use it on the eyebrows.

What is your personal opinion of rogaine/minoxidil regarding its effectiveness? Even though it’s FDA approved, most of the objective literature I find says its results are minimal, disappointing, that its window of working at all is brief etc. I noticed your NHI website doesn’t give it a good review.

I’d estimate that minoxidil works very well in about 15% of patients and there’s some effect in 30% more, but the remaining patients see no benefits with respect to growing new hair. The studies are generally poor for defining the results.