Propecia Linked with Long-Lasting Sexual Side Effects

[Calypso 464]

FYI, just in case you know somebody who uses finasteride...

In April, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) updated the warning to finasteride, Merck & Co.'s drug marketed to treat both male pattern baldness (Propecia) and enlarged prostate (Proscar). The new warnings noted that the sexual side effects associated with the medication, including problems with libido, ejaculations and orgasm, could last even after patients stop taking the drug.

Now a new study published in the Journal of Sexual Medicine finds that side effects may not only continue after stopping finasteride, but they may last for months or even years.

In the study, Dr. Michael Irwig of George Washington University and his colleagues surveyed 54 men under age 40 who reported experiencing side effects for three months or more after taking Propecia to treat hair loss. The patients reported a variety of sexual problems including erectile dysfunction, low libido, trouble having an orgasm, and shrinking and painful genitals. Some men also reported neurological problems like depression, anxiety and cognitive haziness.

For 96% of the men, the sexual problems lasted more than a year after they quit using the drug. None of the men had sexual, medical or psychiatric complaints before taking Propecia.

.....

The FDA's updated warning labels for finasteride were based on a review of post-marketing reports of sexual dysfunction. The agency reviewed 421 post-marketing reports of sexual side effects related to Propecia from 1998 to 2011; out of these cases, 59 reported adverse sexual effects lasting over three months after discontinuing the drug. For Proscar, the FDA reviewed 131 cases of erectile dysfunction and 68 cases of decreased libido from 1992 to 2010.

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Irwig acknowledges that the number of men experiencing long-lasting side effects from finasteride is small, perhaps about 3% of men who take Propecia. "But because the medication is prescribed so commonly, it's still a lot of people, likely several thousand men around the world," Irwig told ABC News.

Both the FDA and Merck maintain that finasteride is safe and effective.

link to full article on Time Healthland

[X Factor 1,112]

Yea I heard that on the news. I know some people that took it. The choice is clear: good hair or good bedroom activities