Finasteride dosage forms & strength
Finasteride comes in 1mg tablets.
Finasteride contraindications
The drug should not be used by women or men under the age of 18 years. Studies have shown that finasteride does not work in women with hair loss.
Finasteride tablets are coated and should not be broken or crushed. Women who are pregnant or are planning to become pregnant should not handle or touch broken or crushed finasteride tablets due to an increased risk of fetal malformations, particularly if the baby is male. If finasteride is absorbed through the skin by a woman who is pregnant with a male baby, it could cause abnormalities of the sex organs.
DO NOT take finasteride if:
- you have previously had an allergic reaction to it
- you are a woman
- you are under 18 years of age
Finasteride interactions
DO NOT take finasteride if you are already taking the following:
- medicines used to treat prostatic hyperplasia, like ‘Proscar’ (which contains 5mg finasteride) or any other type II 5-alpha reductase inhibitors.
Finasteride warnings and precautions
You should check with your doctor first, before using finasteride if:
- you suffer from depression, mood changes, suicidal thoughts.
- you are planning a family, as infertility has been reported in men who took finasteride for a long time;
- you are having a blood test called PSA (Prostate-Specific Antigen) which helps to screen for prostate cancer because finasteride will affect your PSA levels
- you are taking any other medications or herbal supplements which could interact with finasteride.
How to take finasteride
The recommended dose of finasteride for male pattern baldness or ‘androgenic alopecia’ is 1mg daily. The tablet should be swallowed whole with a little water. The tablets can be taken with or without food.
Do not take more than one tablet a day. Taking more tablets will not make the product work faster. This is a long-term treatment and the tablets should be taken over a long period of time for you to see the benefits. It may take up to 6 months for the effects to be seen.
Please note: Finasteride 5mg Tablets (also called ‘Proscar’) are used to treat a condition called BPH or benign prostatic hyperplasia. They are not indicated for male pattern baldness. If you are already taking finasteride for BPH you should not take this product as well.
Driving and using machines
Finasteride has not been shown to affect your ability to drive or use machinery.
Stopping treatment with finasteride
If you stop taking finasteride you will lose any beneficial affects you have seen over the last 9 to 12 months.
Possible side effects of finasteride
You should stop taking finasteride immediately if you experience any of the following symptoms:
- An allergic reaction, the symptoms of which include sudden wheezing, difficulty breathing, dizziness, swelling of the eyelids, face, lips or throat
- Changes in your breast tissue such as lumps, pain, enlargement of the breast tissue or nipple discharge as these could be an early sign breast cancer
- Start to experience a change in your mood, are feeling depressed or are having suicidal thoughts
Side effects reported by patients have been temporary and usually go away with continued treatment or disappear once the treatment is stopped.
The most common side effects include, loss of libido (sexual desire), difficulty having an erection, problems with ejaculation, a decrease in the amount of semen released and depression.
Other reports of rash, itching, breast swelling or breast tenderness, testicular pain, rapid heartbeat, anxiety and increased liver enzymes have been received. However, the frequency of these side effects has not been established.
Some men have reported persistent difficulty to get an erection and a loss of sex drive after stopping finasteride. Male infertility and a reduction in the amount of semen produced has also been reported. Normalisation or improvement of semen quality occurred once finasteride was stopped. The frequency of these reports is also unknown.
If you have any further questions about finasteride, contact FROM MARS.
