Can you miss a week or two of finasteride/dutasteride doses, and not have any negative effects?

Question

I'm currently going through a life change (ie: moving, finding a new doctor, pharmacy, etc). I've been taking a 5ar inhibitor for the past 8 years, and I'm a little bit short on current dosages during the middle of this life transition. I'm thinking I'm going to miss between about 7'ish to 14'ish days of my 5ar inhibitor (dut/fin), until I can get settled. Will I see any negative effects? Or will it be OK to miss a week or two like that? I've never missed before.

Anil R. Shah, MD · Answer

Finasteride's actual half life is between 4 to 7 hours and occurs through a combination of liver and urine.  Despite this, with longer term use, finasteride can accumulate making its actual elimination longer than this.  No study has examined the effects of discontinuation of finasteride so much of this data is anecdotal.  From patient data it appears that 1 week is likely OK and beyond a week could look to higher serum levels of DHT which could cause compensatory hair shedding.  Best Anil Shah

Jason Emer, MD · Answer

It's difficult to determine if this will cause additional hair fall. However, studies have shown you will need to continue to use finasteride to maintain your results. I suggest seeing a hair loss expert now to go over your condition and provide you information about your best treatment options. There are great non-invasive options like prp/progesterone and/or hair transplantation. See an expert. Best, Dr. Emer

William Rassman, MD (retired) · Answer

The drug finasteride stays in your body for up to a week in the hair follicles and dutasterde certainly longer than that. I don't understand; however, why you would not just take the pills with you and keep to a schedule.  Be responsible about your hair loss to yourself.

Can you miss a week or two of finasteride/dutasteride doses, and not have any negative effects?

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Can you miss a week or two of finasteride/dutasteride doses, and not have any negative effects?

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