IS MINOXIDIL A RELIABLE SOLUTION FOR HAIR LOSS?

Minoxidil have been used for a long time to treat hair loss, but were you aware that this medication started out as an antihypertensive? Patients with high blood pressure take antihypertensive to control their blood pressure. Basically, what minoxidil does is it broadens the bore of the blood vessels, allowing more blood to pool into the blood vessels, this lowers blood pressure. In medical terms, minoxidil is a vasodilator.

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But this drug has an unusual side effect. After a few month of use, patients started to notice increased hair growth from all over, even on places where hair seldom grow. Drug companies had taken notice to this strange side effect and reformulated minoxidil to be used as a hair loss treatment.

In 1988, the FDA approved minoxidil as a treatment for male and female pattern baldness, and we have been using this drug ever since. Basically, the drug is massaged into the affected areas of scalp twice a day. There are two kinds preparations: a 5% solution is specially made for men and a 2% solution for women.

But how does minoxidil work in treating male or female pattern baldness?

Collectively, male and pattern hair loss is called alopecia areata. This condition is a genetic type of hair loss where the affected persons scalp hair follicles are sensitive to dihydrotestostrone (DHT). It is believed that DHT cause hair loss by slowly shrinking the blood vessels leading to the hair follicles. This suffocates the hair follicles from nutrient rich blood, which is needed to produce strong healthy hair.

When minoxidil is applied to the scalp, it is absorbed and dilates the blood vessels, increasing the passage of blood to the follicles and stimulates new hair growth. In fact, about 80% of men and 70% of women experienced new hair growth one year of continuous use.