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Fin5.5

Finasteride Research

Mostly mechanism / observational

255 peer-reviewed studies

What the evidence says

Mostly mechanism / observational

Most Finasteride studies are mechanism or observational rather than RCTs that measure a clinical effect — keep findings provisional.

Most evidence is from high-quality meta-analyses and randomised trials published 1993–2026 with a typical study size of 396 participants.

Based on 255 studies · 15 meta-analyses · 215 RCTs · 10,216 total participants

Confidence

High confidence

By outcome

Prostate & male hormonesShrinks the prostate and reduces acute urinary retention and the need for BPH surgery by roughly half over four years · Months to years
Mostly mechanism / observational142 studies
Hair loss (androgenetic alopecia)
Mostly mechanism / observational58 studies
Safety profile
Mostly mechanism / observational6 studies
Mood & psychological effects
Mostly mechanism / observational4 studies

Steady research

31 studies in the last 5 years · Latest meta-analysis: 2025

199320092026

1Meta-Analysis2015

Belknap SM, Aslam I, Kiguradze T, Temps WH, Yarnold PR, Cashy J · JAMA Dermatol (2015)

Finasteride Research

Mostly mechanism / observational

Adverse Event Reporting in Clinical Trials of Finasteride for Androgenic Alopecia: A Meta-analysis.

Prostate volume predicts outcome of treatment of benign prostatic hyperplasia with finasteride: meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials.

Association of finasteride with prostate cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Finasteride for benign prostatic hyperplasia.

The efficacy and safety of 5α-reductase inhibitors in androgenetic alopecia: a network meta-analysis and benefit-risk assessment of finasteride and dutasteride.

The Efficacy and Safety of Finasteride Combined with Topical Minoxidil for Androgenetic Alopecia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis.

Risk of Depression Associated With Finasteride Treatment.

[Effects of finasteride on hematuria associated with benign prostatic hyperplasia: a meta-analysis].

The effectiveness of treatments for androgenetic alopecia: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

Impact of preoperative 5α-reductase inhibitors on perioperative blood loss in patients with benign prostatic hyperplasia: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

Do 5α-Reductase Inhibitors Raise Circulating Serum Testosterone Levels? A Comprehensive Review and Meta-Analysis to Explaining Paradoxical Results.

Meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials of finasteride.

Interventions for female pattern hair loss.

Efficacy and safety of finasteride therapy for androgenetic alopecia: a systematic review.

Cyproterone acetate for hirsutism

A systematic review of the effects and mechanisms of preoperative 5α-reductase inhibitors on intraoperative haemorrhage during surgery for benign prostatic hyperplasia.

The efficacy and use of finasteride in women: a systematic review.

A systematic review of clinical trials using single or combination therapy of oral or topical finasteride for women in reproductive age and postmenopausal women with hormonal and nonhormonal androgenetic alopecia.

[Finasteride: 10 years of clinical use. Systematic review of the literature].

Systematic review of finasteride effect in women with hirsutism.