What hair loss treatments work best for women?

Women are in a difficult position when it comes to drug treatments for hair loss

Doctors are hesitant to prescribe a systemic treatment (pills or some other form of internal treatment that will affect your entire bodily system) unless the physician is certain that the hair loss is being caused by excessive amounts of of androgen in the body. Typically this is due to the problem that these systemic treatments have the potential to lower the body's androgen levels. Alternatively, physicians will often suggest a topical treatment (those that are applied directly to the scalp).

Currently, there are only two FDA approved hair loss treatments: Propecia® (finasteride) and Rogaine® (minoxidil). Minoxidil is currently the only topical hair loss treatment. However, a number of alternative oral and topical products are marketed daily as effective hair regrowth solutions. There is little doubt that advertisers will often make wild claims to sell their product, the real question for women experiencing hair loss is, what proof is there that these products can help regrow lost hair?

Alternatively, there are several non-drug based hair loss treatments that many women have had success regrowing their hair with. The most popular solution is hair transplantation surgery, additionally when a woman is suffering from severe cases of permanent hair loss a non-surgical hair restoration solution may be the best option.

Topical Hair Loss Treatment (minoxidil)

Initially created to treat high blood pressure, it was noticed that patients being treated with minoxidil began experiencing excessive hair growth as well. After doing further research, scientists were able to prove that minoxidil applied directly to the scalp was able to stimulate hair growth. Additionally, the levels of minoxidil that are absorbed into the skin and make it into the bloodstream is typically not significant enough to cause internal side effects.

Women who have been diagnosed with diffuse androgenetic alopecia are able to use minoxidil with surprising success. The manufacturers of minoxidil suggest that women use only the 2% minoxidil and not the 5%. To date, the manufacturers of minoxidil haven't received approval from the FDA to market 5% minoxidil for use by women. Even without FDA approval, many dermatologists actually do prescribe minoxidil 5% for females suffering with androgenetic alopecia when it is able to be used under a doctor's supervision. To date, a few clinical trials have been conducted on androgenetic alopeica treated with 5% minoxidil in women that have showed the 5% solution to be significantly more effective than the 2% in both retaining women's existing hair and regrowing hair that was lost.

Womenshairlossfacts.com realizes that there are limitations when treating androgenetic alopecia (female pattern baldness) with minoxidil, we highly recommend that you seek the advice of a hair loss specialist that can give you more information on the potential treatments listed on this website and how well they make work for you.

Propecia® or Proscar®

The drug known as finasteride inhibits the enzyme 5-alpha reductase, which in turn decreases the production of hair follicle killing DHT. Proscar® was first developed in order to treat the prostate with the brand name of Proscar. Later, a 1 mg version with under the the brand name Propecia® was put on the market and promoted as the first pill FDA approved for men's hair loss. Propeciahas been proven to work well for most men both in preventing har loss and regrowing hair. There drug is not without it s side effects and pregnant women or women who think they may get pregnant should not take it due to the of the risk of birth defects in male fetuses. Additionally, 2% of men taking the drug experienced sexual side effect including erectile dysfunction and lowered libido.

Hair Transplant Surgery for Women

Hair transplantation surger isn't just available for men, it is a viable treatment option for women as well. The most cutting-edge techniques in hair transplantation surgery are largely successful in the treatment of diffuse female-pattern hair loss. If you are concerned about female hair loss and your treatment options you can discuss surgery with your physician or hair restoration expert.

Hair transplantation surgery has resulted in satisfying results for women who have the adequate donor area that is necessary for a successful transplantation. Women are less likely to be satisfied with the results of hair tranplantation if the surgery is a "last ditch" effort to treat advanced hair loss and an adequate donor hair area is non-existant.

If a woman is considering hair tranplantation, she should meet with her physician and agree (prior to treatment) on what they consider realistic expectations for the results of the treatment. It would be considered realistic to expect to achieve significant increase in the density of hair, which is typically satisfactory for the styling of the hair and cosmetic appearance in general. It would be unlrealistic to assume that the result will be a complete restoration of pre-hair loss hair density. Female-pattern hair is progressive and unfortunately, never ending. If you are a woman experiencing female-pattern hair loss but want to maintain the a pre-hair loss hair density you should consult your hair restoration specialist regarding wigs or non-surgical hair loss solutions.

Currently, there aren't any available non-surgical or surgical treatments that are able can cure female-pattern baldness or hair loss. The primary purpose of hair loss treatments is to offset the cosmetic effects of the hair loss or balding.