If Bimatoprost (Latisse) is Similar to Minoxidil, What Is the Big Deal?
Doctor,
Is bimatprost basically a vasodilator? If so I’m not sure what the excitement is about. I’d assume efficacy would most likely be limited as we’ve seen with minoxidil. Maybe a little better, maybe not. Even if it can deliver safely more an effective dose than 5% minoxidil.. its not like there have been miraculous results with say 15% minoxidil. Am I missing something?
Thanks again for taking the time for this site.
Clinical real life results are not the same as textbook conceptual hypothesis. The vasodilator issue may not be the cause of the benefit. Many times, like with minoxidil, the vasodilator does not cause the benefit, but rather the benefit is a side effect of the drug itself. We still do not know why minoxidil (Rogaine) works for hair or why bimatoprost (Latisse) works for eyelashes.
Some people have seen what they’d consider “miraculous” results from minoxidil, so a possible new option for treating hair loss with bimatoprost is why they’re excited (particularly for female hair loss, where drug treatment options are limited). I don’t get too excited about any treatment until I see the results for myself. There’s been too many misses over the years and very few hits.
There is an ongoing study of bimatoprost on the scalp that includes 300 female participants, but results have not been published yet. There might be other studies, but this is the one that came to mind. So whether it is proven safe and effective on the scalp remains to be seen.
Vasodilation is a very common mechanism of hundreds of drugs, all of which (except minoxidil) do not stimulate hair growth. There is some evidence that nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as indomethacin, naproxen, piroxicam, or ibuprofen – that inhibit prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase-1 – can induce hair loss in some individuals. Conversely, while still speculative – there is some evidence that minoxidil exerts its hair effects by activation of prostaglandin endoperoxide synthase-1 in hair follicles (Michelet J-P. Journal of Investigative Dermatology (1997) 108, 205–209)
As Dr R points out, efficacy in “real life” – which can only be determined through clinical trials – is also dependent upon many factors beyond mechanism of action, and includes manufacturing, formulation, absorption, and pharmacokinetics. And, of course, ultimate regulatory approval is dependent upon the safety and efficacy profile.
Dr, ehy do you say that ‘we don’t know how minoxidil works’? i saw dr darjo recently and he explained to me that his team had discovered that minoxidil works by doing something with potassium.
i slways hear different things from different ‘hair drs’ and it makes it very dii
fficult to know who to believe. for credibility if you work together then surely you should all ‘singfrom the same hymn sheet’ at least as far as the science is concerned.
from personal experience minoxidil actually made my hair worse in areas that i used it, and only one year later sm i fairly sure of that.