Reviews and Comments on Propecia Side Effects and Usage page 5
Propecia Reviews
If you’ve used Propecia, please help others by adding your feedback. What would you tell your best friend about this product? Please remember that we do not give medical advice. That is for your local health care provider, who is familiar with your medical history.
Subj: Scared about using Propecia
Date: 6/16/2004
Was curious about using propecia. I am 22 year old male, noticing slight recession of hair in the front of my head and servere thinning of my hair from the back. Every time I put my hand through my hair I noticed hairs falling out. The baldness is not quite visible yet, but I fear it is beginning to get worse and worse quicker and everyday. I want to start on propecia as I feel it will probably be the easiest and most effective way to prevent further hair loss and fill in the thinning areas and live on with a fuller head of hair. I want to act quick, I want something that will work, and I really don’t want to go bald, not at this age at least. Baldness does run in my family however on my dads side.
The problem is I am scared to use the drug. I’ve done an abundance of research online and in fact have scared myself out of starting the treatment. I have read 100’s of horro stories with propecia. From people not sleeping, to getting bad acne, servere blushing of the face and skin, it not working at all, erectile dysfunction, growth of breasts, no sex drive, memory loss and overall slow down of ability to think, personality disorders, etc, etc, etc…and then there are people who say they have quit the drug and some of their side effects haven’t gone away.
Honestly I can deal with the fact that maybe 1% of people might get sexual dysfunction and it will go away if you quit the drug, but after seeing so many people complaining of side effects I fear that the statistics are off and I would be in great danger of being a 22 year old suffering from many problems, specifically the sexual ones. This plus the fact that I am so young, couldn’t it be really bad for me to be on the drug for the next 70+ years of my life!?!?!?! I am extremely confused. I guess what I’m getting at has anybody used propecia and had complete success with no side effects out there?!?! Scared from the net…
Me
AskDocWeb: Yes, many men are successfully using Propecia. But the people who come to this website are usually the ones concerned with side effects or are having a problem. The odds are greatly in your favor that you will have no side effects and that it will work well for you. As to being on it for the next 70 years, that is not likely to happen. At the rate that medical science is progressing, we should have a complete cure for this within the next five to ten years.
Subj: Erection problems
Date: 6/23/2004
My boyfriend has been taking Propecia for roughly 7-8 mos. My concern is that he tells me his libido level is, at times, far lower than it was before taking the drug. He is also unable to have an erection 15-20% of the time, when experienced no problems prior to taking the drug. How likely is it that Propecia is the cause of his sexual problems?
Ashley
AskDocWeb: We would suspect it is the Propecia. One way to find out would be to discontinue the drug for a month. Since it takes up to 12 months to lose the “hair benefits” of Propecia, you could find out what happens to your sex life.
Subj: Body hair?
Date: 6/24/2004
Hi, Does Propecia have any effect on body hair?
King
AskDocWeb: There were no reports of effects on body hair in the clinical trials. One man wrote that he thought with increased DHT, body hair increases and scalp hair decreases.
Subj: Better than anticipated
Date: 6/30/2004
I have been taking a combination of propecia and procerin for about 8 months. My hair in the front and back looks way better than I ever could have anticipated, however. When I wash my hair I still see little hairs coming out in my hands. I have very thick hair and it does not seem to alter the appearance on top. The hairs even come out on the sides. My question is – Is it possible that the hairs I see coming out when I wash my hair have nothing to do with continued hair loss. Thanks,
Chris
AskDocWeb: That is one of the things that make judging progress difficult. It is possible to have new hair growing and be losing other hair at the same time.
Subj: Shooting empty rounds
Date: 7/6/2004
I took Propecia for about three months and recently stopped about 2 wks ago. I just found out yesterday that I was “shooting empty rounds”. Can someone PLEASE tell me if that is one of the side effects? I never had this problem before. If it is, how long before it would go away. I would really appreciate any help, as I am seriously scared right now.
Can you tell me, what can I do now to get the volume back? Thanks soo much,
Peter
AskDocWeb: It may reassure you to know that, in the clinical trials, the sexual side effects disappeared after discontinuing Propecia. They did not, however, say how long it took for those side effects to abate.
Subj: Receding hairline
Date: 7/12/2004
Hi, I was wondering if Propecia can keep your hairline as it is, or at least prevent a hairline from receding. I know that the website says it does not work on receding hairlines, but I’m not sure what that means. Are there any treatments that are proven to maintain hairlines?
Scott
AskDocWeb: What that means is that you are not going to regrow a hairline to where it originally was, before it receded, with Propecia alone. Propecia will help most men keep what hair they have and make areas that currently grow hair, grow it thicker. If your goal is to recover your hairline, many men are getting good results combining Minoxidil with the Propecia.
Subj: Body building
Date: 7/13/2004
Hello, I’ve been taking propecia for the last year with good results. I’m trying to add some muscles and body weight by working out and body building trainings (I’m not taking any supplements or steroids). Can propecia prevent me from developing more muscles? is there any research about propecia and body building/ sports training? Thank you.
David
AskDocWeb: The only reference we could find that comes close to what you are asking, was that a very small percentage of men started to develop breasts. There were no references to developing muscle mass, body building, weight changes, or changes in BMI.
Subj: 4 years later and problems continue
Date: 7/15/2004
Hi, I would like to tell you about my experience with Propecia. I took the drug for about 5months. The results were outstanding however I noticed immediately once I started taking it that my sex drive dropped. My erections were much smaller and I had less ejaculation. Well I waited 5months for the effects to go away but they never did so I discontinued the med. Well here I am 4 years later and my problems continue. Is there anyone else who has experienced this??? Please help
Fred
Subj: Confused
Date: 7/16/2004
I am a 44yo male and have been on 0.25mg Finasteride (1/4 Propecia) for about 6 years with excellent results (estimate NW2.5 to full head hair) …until about 9mos ago. I started upping and lowering the dose from 0.25 to 1mg many times over last year —as I was told I should be on 1.0mg for long term…..but increased shedding when I did and would lower again to .25 or .50, happened 10-15 times.
9 mos ago I began having tingling (as I’ve heard chemotherapy patients talk about with hair loss), prickling and warmth of the whole scalp and bright red flushed feeling of both ears/neck associated with shedding and hair becoming wispy. I have allot of itching around the areas that normally not involved in MPB (perimeter of scalp — no seb derm noted). Do you have any ideas as to what may be occurring? I added Rogaine 5% 4 weeks ago had terrible shedding and some irritation at the 3rd week (400+ hairs/day). I am now using 1x/night.
The manipulation of the dose may have altered (unregulated) DHT receptors or maybe I have become tolerant or perhaps need a higher dose to block the DHT (I plan to check my free DHT & testosterone levels) ??? …I’m not well enough versed in the biochemistry of Finasteride to know. At this point I’m unsure and totally confused and in a bit of a panic as to how to proceed or what dose to use.
Dale
AskDocWeb: Try reading “Advice from Brian” dated 7/9/2004. It might “shed” some light on your situation.
Subj: Discontinuing Rogaine
Date: 7/18/2004
I am an 18 year old who has been experiencing hairloss for 2-3 years and who recently began a treatment of rogaine and propecia. I have been using them for about a month and noticed an increased heart rate and a poorer quality of sleep. I checked online and discovered that elevated heart rate (which can result in a poorer quality of sleep) is a side-effect of rogaine. My question is that, if I am in the shedding stage caused by rogaine where you lose more hair before growing back new hair, is it bad to discontinue the use of rogaine? I read that when you stop rogaine the hair growth you encountered while using it will go away and you’ll go back to where you were before taking it, but if you stop taking it during the shedding phase will you go back to where you were before taking it or will the hair you lost in the first month or so of using rogaine be permanent. Please advise, as the rapid heart rate is not so bad that I feel like I have to stop it immediately if stopping immediately means that the shedding I encountered will be permanent.
Chris
AskDocWeb: At this point we just don’t know. We are still learning about the shedding phase.
Subj: Why
Date: 7/25/2004
Althogh I’ve been taking Propecia for about 8 months now, but my hair loss is continuing! Why?
H.
AskDocWeb: According to Merck Pharmaceuticals, Propecia stops the progression of hair loss in 83% of men. You may be in the other 17%, the group of men for which Propecia does not work.
Subj: Discontinuing Propecia
Date: 7/26/2004
I’m 32 years old and I started taking propecia about a year ago. I started because I noticed my hairline dramatically ‘recede’ over a period of a few months (although the time frame is not scientific). Aside from the receding hairline, my hair in general remains quite thick and I have lots of it. I’ve read that there is no evidence of propecia helping with receding hairline and I’m wondering if I’m not a good candidate for it. I’m afraid that in time, discontinuing it may increase hair-loss & hair thinning much more so than it would have had I not taken it in the first place. Any thoughts?
Jeehun
AskDocWeb: If you started taking Propecia a year ago and your hairline continues to recede then we agree, you are probably not a good candidate for that. According to the manufacturer, when you discontinue Propecia, any hair you kept because of taking Propecia will fall out within a year. We found no mention of loosing more hair than you would have if you had not taken the Propecia.
Subj: Shen Min and Propecia
Date: 7/26/2004
Would it not be recommended to use Shen Min and Propecia at the same time? Like, could the combination be harmful somehow?
Dan
AskDocWeb: Updated answer 5/25/07: Shen Min is not recommended.
Subj: Warnings about pregnancy
Date: 7/27/2004
Hello! New Propecia user, here. I’m curious about how all the warnings about pregnancy and fetal defects relate to a Propecia user contemplating fatherhood. Are there any reports on this? Thank you.
Frank
AskDocWeb: The largest concern seems to be keeping your partner away from contact with the Propecia. This would include things like washing your hands after taking it. Some men even rinse or use mouthwash after taking a pill and before kissing their partner. We have feedback from men who had reduced sperm count and erectile dysfunction from taking this product. Note that this was from a small percentage of users but, it is a major concern for those who experience it. That should be considered if you are contemplating fatherhood.
Subj: Lack of sexual drive
Date: 7/27/2004
Typical of most men using Propecia, I have about 1/2 the sexual desire, and no morning erections. I’m 23. It’s a toss-up between my hair or my sex life. So far I’ve chosen my hair. Every single person I’ve talked to has almost the identical problem in using Propecia (clearly the less than 1% is just factually incorrect). What drugs can I use to counter-act this side effect? Would Viagra help? This lack of sexual drive is directly due to Propecia as I never had this issue before using the product. Please do not tell me to consult a physician as I know the source of the problem. Please advise me if there are any commonly used and effective counter drugs to this side effect. Thanks,
Enrico
AskDocWeb: According to the manufacturer, that 1% is actually 1.8%. That is, one out of every 56 men who use Propecia has some form of sexual side effect. At least that is the number reported in the clinical trials. Viagra and Cialis would seem to be the most likely possibilities for help. Both of these present their own side effects. Another possible help would be to exercise so that you are in better physical condition for sex. Read more feedback.
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