In recent months, there has been a lot of talk about topical finasteride and dutasteride. Even some of the world's best hair transplant surgeons have been formulating and compounding their topical formulas to provide to their patients. The question is whether or not these topical formulas can be purchased online legitimately. In this article, we will be going over some current options and some options in the pipeline.
Online Mail Order Vendors
In recent years, online mail-order vendors have exploded in popularity, everything from erectile dysfunction pills to hair loss medication. Two things that men feel embarrassed about no longer need an in-person prescription. There are multiple online pharmacies like Hims, Keeps, Getroman that link patients with physicians who can perform online consultations and write them prescriptions for these medications without ever having to step foot in an office. Unfortunately, none of these vendors offer topical finasteride or dutasteride. The reason is the FDA hasn't approved topical finasteride/dutasteride. Therefore, physicians cannot write prescriptions for topical treatments.
There are currently two companies that offer topical finasteride/dutasteride for mail-order purchase. These two companies are called Happy Head, based out of Santa Monica, California. They offer customizable topical solutions ranging from 6-8% minoxidil and 0.25% finasteride with retinoic acid and hydrocortisone. They include a consultation with a licensed dermatologist as well.
The other company is called Strut. Strut offers a wide array of medications, unlike Happy Head, which focuses solely on hair loss. Strut provides medicines for sexual health, anti-aging, and hair loss. Also, a significant difference between Strut and Happy Head is that they also offer topical dutasteride 0.1%. Dutasteride is the most potent anti-androgen on the market. Studies show it can inhibit over 90% of DHT. DHT is the hormone responsible for causing genetic hair loss.
Hair Transplant Surgeons Who Offer Topical Finasteride
Hair transplant surgeons have been offering their topical formulations for years. The companies above have reviews on their sites, but the reality is that medication can only go so far. The only guaranteed way to restore hair on a completely bald scalp is through surgical hair restoration. The good thing about going to a hair transplant surgeon for topical treatments is that they can offer more than just medication. It takes a combination of treatments and surgery to restore all of your hair loss. Below are the current physicians we know offering topical finasteride/dutasteride.
Dr. Carlos Wesley- New York
Dr. Wesley is a member of the Coalition of Independent Hair Restoration Physicians. Only the world's best hair transplant surgeons can be members. Dr. Wesley has been a big proponent for topical treatments, even citing medical publications in an article he wrote on medical therapy for hair loss.
Hasson and Wong- Vancouver, British Columbia
Dr. Hasson and Dr. Wong have been one of the world's most powerful hair transplant duos for decades. They currently offer topical finasteride to their patients in Canada and have plans to provide their compounded solutions internationally. We spoke candidly to Dr. Jerry Wong last month, and he said that he foresees topical finasteride and dutasteride becoming the gold standard soon. You can view the entire interview here.
Dr. Christian Bisanga- Belgium
Dr. Bisanga is one of the world's best Follicular unit extraction (FUE) surgeons. We spoke to Dr. Bisanga a few months ago. He said his patients had seen better responses from oral minoxidil and topical finasteride than the latter topical minoxidil and oral finasteride. Check out the full interview here.
Conclusion
There are several studies on Pubmed reviewing topical finasteride. One study showed 80% of the participants either maintained their baseline hair density or saw a significant improvement. In other words, they either stopped their hair loss or saw hair regrowth. Another study showed that despite the daily application of topical finasteride, there was no decrease in systemic DHT levels for six months. Both are considered positive for medical therapy. For the latest on hair loss treatments, surgery, and to see actual hair transplant results follow us @thehairtransplantnetwork on Instagram.