Mesotherapy with dutasteride involves direct scalp injection of diluted dutasteride solution into the dermis/subcutis using microinjections or microneedling. Small studies have shown promising results for androgenetic alopecia, with potential benefits of high local concentration and minimal systemic absorption. Evidence comes from case series and retrospective cohorts rather than randomized trials. Injecting dutasteride into the scalp for hair loss is off-label: the FDA approves dutasteride for bph/">benign prostatic hyperplasia only, in oral form.
How It Works
Dutasteride is diluted in saline or other vehicles and injected directly into the scalp at the level of the hair follicle bulge. This delivers high local drug concentrations where it is needed while bypassing systemic circulation. In the largest published cohort, the most common schedule during the first year was one session every three months.
Evidence Base
The largest published series is a multicentre Spanish retrospective study of 541 patients with at least six months of follow-up. Response to mesotherapy as monotherapy could be assessed in 86 patients (15.9%) after one year; most improved, and 33 of those 86 (38.4%) showed marked improvement. Pain was the most frequent side effect, in 246 patients (45.5%), and no serious or sexual adverse events were recorded. Because the design is retrospective with no control arm, the evidence sits well below the randomized trial data for oral dutasteride.
Topical dutasteride · All studies
Sources
- Saceda-Corralo D, Rodrigues-Barata AR, Vañó-Galván S, Jaén-Olasolo P. Mesotherapy with dutasteride in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia. Int J Trichology. 2017;9(3):143-145. PubMed 28932074
- Saceda-Corralo D, Moustafa F, Moreno-Arrones Ó, et al. Mesotherapy with dutasteride for androgenetic alopecia: a retrospective study in real clinical practice. J Drugs Dermatol. 2022;21(7):742-747. PubMed 35816059