Topical finasteride, minoxidil combination efficacious in male androgenic alopecia

Key takeaways:

• Finasteride and minoxidil are often used to treat male androgenic alopecia.
• This study found slightly better improvement in hair growth in patients using both topical products vs. those using only minoxidil.

A combination of topical finasteride and minoxidil was more efficacious than minoxidil alone in the treatment of male pattern androgenic alopecia, according to a study.

“Several treatment options are available for androgenic alopecia in men. Medications such as minoxidil and finasteride are commonly used,” Nazia Asad, MD, of the department of dermatology at Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre in Karachi, Pakistan, and colleagues, wrote. “It is important to note that while these treatments can be effective in slowing down hair loss and promoting hair growth, individual results may vary.”

This study aimed to compare the efficacy of topical minoxidil 5% monotherapy with a combination of finasteride 0.25% and minoxidil 5% measured by improvements in Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) scores.

The study included 164 patients randomly assigned 1:1 to Group A, which used the combination therapy, or Group B, which used monotherapy.

At baseline, both groups had a mean SALT score of 1.8 with a standard deviation (SD) of 0.7 in Group A and 0.6 in Group B.

After 3 months of treatment, the mean SALT score in Group A improved to 2.9 (SD, 1.3), whereas it improved to 2.7 (SD, 1.9) in Group B.

“These results demonstrate that both treatment groups showed an improvement in the SALT score after 3 months, but the magnitude of improvement was slightly higher in Group A compared to Group B,” the authors wrote.

Significant hair growth was shown in 86.7% of Group A and 69.1% of Group B (P = .006), with 100% of Group A patients with vertex involvement showing efficacy compared with 55.6% of Group B (P = .001). For those with occipital involvement, 100% and 58.8% showed efficacy, respectively (P = .005). The difference in parietal (Group A, 90% vs. Group B, 89.5%) and frontal (Group A, 69% vs. Group B, 70.4%) involvement was not significant between the groups.

“The combination therapy showed superior efficacy compared to topical minoxidil 5% alone,” the authors wrote. “Clinicians should consider combination therapy as a potential treatment option for patients with androgenic alopecia.”