Improvement In Scalp Hair Growth In Androgen-Deficient Women Treated With Testosterone: A Questionnaire Study

Br J Dermatol. 2011 Oct 3. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2133.2011.10655.x. [Epub ahead of print]
Improvement In Scalp Hair Growth In Androgen-Deficient Women Treated With Testosterone: A Questionnaire Study.
Glaser R, Dimitrakakis C, Messenger AG.

Millennium Wellness Center, 228 E. Spring Valley Road, Dayton, Ohio 45458 & Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine, Department of Surgery, 3460 Colonel Glenn Highway, Dayton, Ohio 45435, USA  1st Department of Ob/Gyn, Athens University Medical School, 80 Vas. Sophias Street, 11528, Athens, Greece & National Institutes of Health, NICHD, Bldg 10, 10 Center Drive, Bethesda, MD 20892-1103, USA  Department of Dermatology, Royal Hallamshire Hospital, Sheffield S10 2JF, UK.

Background:  Androgens are thought to have an adverse effect on female scalp hair growth. However, our clinical experience of androgen replacement therapy in women with androgen deficiency, in which hair loss was seldom reported, led us to question this concept. Objectives:  This study was designed to evaluate the effect of subcutaneous testosterone therapy on scalp hair growth in female patients. Methods:  285 women, treated for a minimum of 1 year with subcutaneous testosterone implants for symptoms of androgen deficiency, were asked to complete a survey that included questions on scalp and facial hair. Age, BMI, and serum testosterone levels were examined. Results:  76 of 285 patients (26.7%) reported hair thinning prior to treatment. 47 of these patients (63%) reported hair re-growth on testosterone therapy (responders). Non-responders (i.e. no reported hair re-growth on therapy) had significantly higher BMIs than responders (P=0.05). Baseline serum testosterone levels were significantly lower in women reporting hair loss prior to therapy than those who did not (P=0.0001). There was no significant difference in serum testosterone levels, measured four weeks after testosterone implantation, between responders and non-responders. No patient in this cohort reported scalp hair loss on testosterone therapy. 262 women (92%) reported some increase in facial hair growth. Conclusions:  Subcutaneous testosterone therapy was found to have a beneficial effect on scalp hair growth in female patients treated for symptoms of androgen deficiency. We propose this is due to an anabolic of testosterone on hair growth. The fact that no subject complained of hair loss as a result of treatment casts doubt on the presumed role of testosterone in driving female scalp hair loss. These results need to be confirmed by formal measurements of hair growth.

Very interesting. Thanks for posting.

I'm beginning to look into estrogen dominance, and I'm glad you posted this, it's very relevant.