Improved hair loss treatments on the horizon

For people experiencing hair loss, there’s a mix of encouraging and discouraging news. No drug treatments have gained FDA approval since 1997, and the most effective therapy, a hair transplant, is expensive. But transplants now offer increasingly satisfying results thanks to improved surgical techniques, and recent biotechnology discoveries may lead to less invasive treatments, reports the August 2008 issue of the Harvard Health Letter.

The FDA has approved two drugs, minoxidil (Rogaine) and finasteride (Propecia), to slow hair loss or regrow hair. Propecia is more effective than Rogaine, but it’s more expensive. A major drawback of both is that you need to keep on taking them to sustain the benefits.

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