Proscar

Manufacturer: Merck.

Proscar web site.

Finasteride. Dosage: 5mg/day.

If you've been following the content of this site in the order suggested on our home page, this should be the perfect time to shed some light on how the connection between hair loss and Dehydro-Testosterone was made in the first place. Originally, knowing that DHT is the cause for BPH (enlargement of the prostate gland), Merck developed Proscar, a drug designed to lower DHT levels. Patients using Proscar who suffered from Hair Loss and Male Pattern Baldness, reported hair growth as a side effect. Merck then developed Propecia, a drug based on a lower dosage of Finasteride, the same active ingredient as in Proscar, yet much more expensive. The reason for the high price tag is that while there are a few more ways of treating BPH, Propecia is one of only two drugs medically proven for the treatment of Male Pattern Baldness. The other drug, Rogaine, is considered less effective and so as long as there is no real competition to Propecia, Merck will capitalize on that to make heavy profits.

Dividing a Proscar pill to 4 pieces:

As Proscar contains 5mg of Finasteride, some people divide the pill to 4 parts hoping each would contain 1.25 mg, roughly the same dose as in a single Propecia pill. In practice, there is no guarantee that each part will contain this dose, as no one really knows whether all the 5mg of Finasteride are equally divided throughout the pill. This way one might end up taking a high dose on some days and a low dose on others. Dividing a substance equally inside of a pill at the production level costs the manufacturer more money, so it's unlikely Merck choose to implement such feature in this case. The fact that Merck does not release any information regarding this issue, and since the uncertainty plays to their advantage, both make the assumption that the substance is not necessarily equally divided inside the pill more concrete.

Studies that tested the efficiency of Finasteride in various dosages, show that using a lower dosages of 0.5 mg/day, or even 0.2 mg/day will produce more or less the same results that are achieved using the recommended dosage of 1 mg/day. In the Research and Studies section, there is reference to one such study.

Since Proscar is a drug intended for treatment of BPH (enlargement of the prostate gland) not every doctor would be willing to prescribe it as a Hair Loss treatment for a patients who suffer from Male Pattern Baldness.

Side effects are similar to those of Propecia. In this dosage there is also a possibility of breast enlargement or tenderness (apparently the reference is to gynecomastia).