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Information About Minoxidil and Rogaine

The experiments proved promising enough to convince the FDA to allow it's sale as a prescription drug for the purpose of stimulating hair growth. Regular strength Rogaine was approved for men as a prescription product in August of 1988 and for women in August of 1991. Rogaine for Men and Rogaine for Women were cleared for over-the-counter sale in February of 1996. A New Drug Application (NDA) was submitted for Rogaine Extra Strength for Men as a prescription product in December of 1995 and reached approvable status in December of 1996. Pharmacia & Upjohn elected not to pursue final approval as a prescription drug, but instead filed a NDA in February of 1997 seeking over-the-counter clearance.

Minoxidil is the ONLY substance which has been laboratory tested and been proven to restore hair growth in people. However, it varies considerably from person to person in how well it works. Hair that has been lost through male pattern baldness seems particularly resistant. Male pattern baldness is the gradual loss of hair above the forehead. In some men it eventually reaches the crown of the head. Minoxidil is almost completely ineffective for this type of hair loss. Instead, the manufacturer recommends it for the type of baldness that occurs at the very top and upper back of the head. This bald spot is the most likely to be helped by minoxidil. Your age may also play an important roll in restoring hair growth with minoxidil. The younger you are, the greater your chance of success.

Minoxidil only works with regular applications. When the applications stop, the hair growth reverts to the old pattern. To keep any hair that may grow, you need to apply minoxidil daily. After about 6 months it should be apparent if the treatments are worth continuing. 

Rogaine is not very expensive at this time. It is available without a prescription and there are generic versions available. These versions are chemically identical to Rogaine's formula. By federal law, the formula cannot vary from the guidelines. There was concern over the fact that minoxidil was originally a heart medication and may have serious side effects. After some recent studies it appears that topical application minimizes these risks. 

There are other treatments that do not use minoxidil. In the few studies that have been done, virtually all baldness treatments work to one degree or another. It seems to be the result of paying more attention to the scalp. Even simple scalp massages increase the flow of blood to the scalp and result in an increase of hair growth. Also a vibrating brush may contribute to increased hair growth. The studies also show that while hair growth was increased with scalp stimulation, only a moderate increase was achieved.

In summary, If you are under 40 and have premature hair loss on the crown of the skull, you are a good candidate for minoxidil.