Male pattern baldness (MPB) is a condition that affects about half of all men, and contrary to popular belief it is not just a problem of older age. It’s a hereditary condition that is caused by a reaction to a hormone called dihydrotestosterone (DHT), and it can begin to cause thinning hair and bald patches as early as the 20s or 30s.
What are the most effective and affordable treatments for MPB?
Some men embrace thinning hair with close cuts or a shaved head, but for many the loss of their crowning glory can cause acute emotional distress. There are some medications that can slow or even reverse the effects of MPB, such as finasteride (an oral tablet sometimes branded as Propecia, although unbranded finasteride is cheaper).
Finasteride works by reducing the levels of DHT in the body, helping to prevent further hair loss and promoting regrowth. It only works for as long as you are taking it, and for best results it’s important to start using it as soon as you notice the first signs of hair loss.
It’s only suitable for treating MPB and will have no effect on other types of hair loss, such as alopecia or hair loss caused by stress, illness, or cancer treatment. In rare cases, finasteride can cause side effects including skin rashes, depression, and erectile dysfunction.
It can also potentially harm a male foetus in pregnant women, so it should not be used by men with a pregnant partner. Men who are concerned about these side effects may wish to explore alternatives such as minoxidil, which is a hair loss treatment that is applied directly to the scalp.
More advanced treatments for MBP
There are more advanced treatments for MPB, but these are significantly more expensive, invasive and time consuming than finasteride or minoxidil. For example, hair transplants involve transferring skin from an area of the scalp with healthy hair follicles to a bald area, or extracting individual hair follicles and implanting them.
However, research is continually ongoing into potential new treatments for MPB that have effective and permanent results. These are not likely to be widely available for several years, but new discoveries in science and technology bode well for the future. Here’s a look at some of the latest developments in the field.
Gene Therapy and CRISPR Technology In the future, scientists may be able to directly edit the genes that are responsible for MPB with technology such as Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR).
This is still an emerging field of research and could have many applications in medical science. For MPB, it could allow scientists to alter the genes responsible, providing a permanent and effective solution.
Stem Cell Therapy
Stem cell therapy is another promising area of research for MBP. The procedure is already used to treat serious diseases such as cancer, but it could potentially also be used to regenerate damaged or even dead hair follicles. In clinical trials, patients have successfully regrown hair after harvested stem cells were injected back into the scalp.
Deoxy Ribose Sugar
Meanwhile, scientists at the University of Sheffield have recently discovered that a type of naturally occurring sugar in the human body can stimulate hair growth in mice who have DHT driven hair loss.
The sugar, known as 2-deoxy-D-ribose (2dDR), is being studied by scientists at Sheffield and the COMSATS University Pakistan to investigate wound healing through the production of new blood vessels. The scientists noticed that hair around the wounds regrew more quickly compared to untreated mice.
Professor Sheila MacNeil, Emeritus Professor of Tissue Engineering at the University of Sheffield, said: “Male pattern baldness is such a common condition, affecting men all over the world, but at the moment there are only two FDA licensed drugs to treat it.”
“Our research suggests that the answer to treating hair loss might be as simple as using a naturally occurring deoxy ribose sugar to boost the blood supply to the hair follicles to encourage hair growth.”
“The research we have done is very much early stage, but the results are promising and warrant further investigation. This could offer another approach to treating this condition which can affect men’s self-image and confidence.”
Professor (Associate) Muhammed Yar (T.I.) of IRCBM, COMSATS University Pakistan, said: “This pro-angiogenic deoxy ribose sugar is naturally occurring, inexpensive and stable and
we have shown it can be delivered from a variety of carrier gels or dressings. This makes it an attractive candidate to explore further for treatment of hair loss in men.”
These are just a few examples of potential new treatments for MPB, and although they may be in the early stages, it is promising news for the millions of men affected by the condition worldwide.
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