New Odorless Topical Spiro Lotion

Article by HairlossTalk.com

HairlossTalk: What will be the most effective way for this lotion to be applied. I know some people complain of difficulty applying other lotion based topicals because it gets all over their hair - especially those with diffuse thinning rather than receding or a bald spot.

Dr. Lee: It's a lotion, so its not as thick as a cream, but with a lotion you can put some on your fingertip and localize where you put it, unlike an alcohol based liquid. It will be easier to apply for those who have a well defined area of recession or thinning. With diffuse thinning, of course, you have to cover the whole area, so its a little bit more difficult. If you're just applying it to the temples, its great. For diffuse thinning, its probably better to use something like Propecia because you're dealing with the entire scalp area that way.



HairlossTalk: Tell us about the new Topical Spiro product you plan to release which will have no unpleasant smell.

Dr. Lee: The reason why Spiro smells so unpleasant in our current solution is because it is in an alcohol base, so that it is quite volatile. Consequently, the smell was sometimes sour. In the new product, it is not volatile at all. The old product seemed to increase in smell as time went on (sometimes only a few days), however this new product has a shelf life of over a year.

HairlossTalk: The goal with Propecia obviously is a systemic altering of hormonal balances. It works from within the bloodstream to affect the levels of DHT throughout the whole body. It takes time for it to actually begin to affect the hormonal processes going on in the Scalp. It's not instant in the scalp even though its bloodstream effects are instant, and even when it has begun to work in the scalp, its even longer before you notice anything aesthetically as far as maintenance of hair or regrowth. Why is it that we have such an effective systemic DHT inhibitor, and the concept of systemic DHT inhibitors, especially with the upcoming release of Dutasteride is very clear to us that it works... but its so difficult for scientists to come up with a topical DHT inhibitor that comes anywhere near to working as well? It would seem to us that having to change your hormonal balances throughout your entire body would be incredibly unnecessary just to achieve the goal of making a change in the scalp. Why is it so hard for us to make something work *locally* in a topical formulation? Is it an issue of not enough absorption? Is it an issue of too much absorption which results in the active ingredient being "washed" away by the bloodstream, causing the treatment to not be present a sufficient number of hours out of the day to actually make a difference?

Dr. Lee: Actually its both. By the way Finasteride (the active ingredient in Propecia) does work topically. When Merck was doing their trials, they had to make a decision as to what they felt would be a better selling product: A pill, or a topical applied solution. By far, people would rather take a pill, so this is the route they took. To answer your question: Why don't topicals work as well? It's for many reasons. One reason is that it doesn't stay in the skin long enough. That's the problem with progesterone. It's absorbed, metabolized, and carried away so quickly that it's not effective when it's applied topically. Another problem is absorption. There are very few things that get absorbed into skin very well at all. Its quite the protective device.

HairlossTalk: So the goal for researchers as far as finding topical DHT inhibitors should be a focus more so on finding one that, once absorbed, isn't metabolized so quickly?



Dr. Lee: Yes. One that doesn't get carried away by the circulatory system. They did that with progesterone by putting it into an oil base so that it had a slow, timed release. I have been doing a lot of work with a Biochemist in the Bay Area using liposome's, and that works very well at keeping the active ingredients stationary in the scalp once absorbed, but the expenses involved make it prohibitive. So yes, we're still looking for the holy grail.

HairlossTalk: So why is it that Spiro still works even though, as you mentioned, it gets metabolized so quickly?

Dr. Lee: It absorbs into the skin and blocks the receptor site. Anything that gets into the bloodstream, has already been degraded.

- Read the Product Review for Men on Topical Spironolactone
- Read the Product Review for Women on Topical Spironolactone
- Men: Discuss Topical Spironolactone in our Men's Forums.
- Women: Discuss Topical Spironolactone in our Women's Forums.

HLT

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