Topical Finasteride: A Comprehensive Review of Androgenetic Alopecia Management for Men and Women

The most prevalent kind of alopecia, androgenetic alopecia, commonly known as male or female pattern hair loss, affects both men and women, with the frequency rising with advancing years. Even though practicing dermatologists and hair experts frequently encounter it, it might be one of the most challenging disorders to treat since choosing a course of action frequently requires a comprehensive analysis of several variables and moral judgment. Effectiveness, side effect profiles, practicability, promoting compliance, and treatment cost are the most important factors to take into account, especially given the chronic nature of androgenetic alopecia. A clinician's ability to select the optimum course of treatment for each patient may be constrained and clouded by their knowledge base, experience, and financial compensation. A search was done to find research on the effectiveness of topical finasteride therapy, including clinically pertinent case reports and papers. Only topical minoxidil and oral finasteride are now approved by the Food and Drug Administration and the European Medicines Agency for the treatment of androgenetic alopecia. Despite being effective for hair regeneration, systemic use of finasteride is accompanied by adverse effects that prevent long-term use. Investigating topical finasteride as another possible treatment plan may be fruitful. Early research on the use of topical finasteride is safe and encouraging, despite its limitations. More research on drug distribution, ideal topical strength and usage regularity, adverse effects, and application for other alopecias would aid in elucidating the range of topical finasteride use.