Browsing by Author "Moreira, Diogo Fernando Sousa Oliveira"
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- Non-surgical treatments for androgenetic alopecia in adult men: indications, adverse effects and efficacy: Systematic ReviewPublication . Moreira, Diogo Fernando Sousa Oliveira; Simões, José Augusto Rodrigues; Craveiro, José FilipeBackground: Androgenetic alopecia is the most common cause of hair loss in humans. It is mediated by dihydrotestosterone [DHT], a form of testosterone. It usually appears in adolescence and tends to evolve into progressive hair loss that follows a pattern distribution. The frequency of men suffering from androgenetic alopecia increases with age, affecting up to 80 % of Caucasian men. In recent years, several surgical and non-surgical treatments have been developed to treat and prevent this condition. Objective: Determine the efficacy and safety of existing non-surgical therapies for androgenetic alopecia. This paper intends to summarize the therapeutic evidence of these therapies, providing doctors with a tool that allows them to medicate their patients based on the evidence shown. Methods: A search was performed in PubMed, Scopus and Cochrane of clinical trials published in English, dated between 2011 and 2021. The search strategy used was “(Androgenetic alopecia AND ((therapeutics) OR (therapy) OR (treatment))”, with the added filter of clinical trials involving only men over 18 years of age. The main outcome was the evaluation of the effectiveness of the different therapies and the secondary outcome was the analysis of the safety of these therapies. Results: 14 studies were included in this systematic review, of which 11 are randomized controlled trials and 3 are non-randomized clinical trials. Of these studies, 4 analysed the efficacy and safety of 5 alpha Reductase enzyme inhibitors, 5 addressed minoxidil therapies, and 5 focused on the analysis of low-level laser therapy (LLLT). These studies seem to demonstrate that the 3 therapies mentioned above have some effectiveness in fighting androgenetic alopecia. The adverse effects of these therapies are also described in the included studies, however, to more precisely assess the safety level of the different treatments, further studies are suggested. It is also worth noting that 11 of the studies presented have a moderate risk of bias, 2 have a high risk of bias and 1 of the studies has a very high risk of bias. Conclusion: The analysed therapies seem to be promising in the treatment of androgenetic alopecia, since all seem to demonstrate efficacy in this use.