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Dutasteride, sold under the brand name Avodart among others, is a medication primarily used to treat the symptoms of a benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH), an enlarged prostate not associated with cancer. A few months may be required before benefits occur. It is also used for scalp hair loss in men and as a part of hormone therapy in transgender women. It is usually taken by mouth. The most commonly reported side effects of dutasteride, although rare, include sexual dysfunction and depression. In the largest available study of 6,729 men with BPH, 9% experienced erectile dysfunction (compared to 5.7% treated with a placebo), 3.3% experienced decreased sex drive (vs 1.6% of placebo), and 1.9% had enlarged breasts (vs 1% of placebo). Exposure during pregnancy is specifically contraindicated because antiandrogens such as dutasteride have been shown to interfere with the sexual development of male fetuses. Dutasteride was patented in 1993 by GlaxoSmithKline and was approved for medical use in 2001. In the United States and elsewhere, it is available as a generic medication. In 2018, it was the 291st-most commonly prescribed medication in the US with more than 1 million prescriptions. Dutasteride is used for treating BPH, colloquially known as an "enlarged prostate". It is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the U.S. for this indication. A 2010 Cochrane review found a 25–26% reduction in the risk of developing prostate cancer with 5α-reductase inhibitor chemoprevention. Dutasteride is approved for the treatment of male androgenetic alopecia in South Korea and Japan at a dosage of 0.5 mg per day. Several studies have found it to induce hair regrowth in men more rapidly and to a greater extent than even the highest approved dosage of finasteride. The superior effectiveness of dutasteride relative to finasteride for this indication is because the inhibition of 5α-reductase and consequent reduction of dihydrotestosterone (DHT) production within the hair follicles is more complete with dutasteride.

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Related concepts (19)

5α-Reductase inhibitor

5α-Reductase inhibitors (5-ARIs), also known as dihydrotestosterone (DHT) blockers, are a class of medications with antiandrogenic effects which are used primarily in the treatment of enlarged prostate and scalp hair loss. They are also sometimes used to treat excess hair growth in women and as a component of hormone therapy for transgender women. These agents inhibit the enzyme 5α-reductase, which is involved in the metabolic transformations of a variety of endogenous steroids.

Feminizing hormone therapy

Feminizing hormone therapy, also known as transfeminine hormone therapy, is hormone therapy and sex reassignment therapy to change the secondary sex characteristics of transgender people from masculine or androgynous to feminine. It is a common type of transgender hormone therapy (another being masculinizing hormone therapy) and is used to treat transgender women and non-binary transfeminine individuals. Some, in particular intersex people but also some non-transgender people, take this form of therapy according to their personal needs and preferences.

Pattern hair loss

Pattern hair loss (also known as androgenetic alopecia (AGA)) is a hair loss condition that primarily affects the top and front of the scalp. In male-pattern hair loss (MPHL), the hair loss typically presents itself as either a receding front hairline, loss of hair on the crown (vertex) of the scalp, or a combination of both. Female-pattern hair loss (FPHL) typically presents as a diffuse thinning of the hair across the entire scalp.

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Puromycin-sensitive aminopeptidase: Sequence analysis, expression, and functional characterization

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Among the molecular mechanisms that control the cell division cycle, proteolysis has emerged as a key regulatory process enabling cells to pass critical check points. Such proteolysis involves a cascade of enzymes including a multisubunit complex termed 26 ...

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