Here's a good example of a true garbage "study" some fina users try to cope with;
Abstract. Post-finasteride syndrome (PFS) has been claimed to occur in men who have taken oral finasteride to treat either hair loss or benign prostatic hyperplasia, independent of age, dosage, or indication. By definition, the condition is characterized by sexual dysfunction, somatic symptoms...
www.karger.com
Post-Finasteride Syndrome: An Induced Delusional Disorder with the Potential of a Mass Psychogenic Illness?
Here's a good breakdown from a user on reddit:
"This article is a
case report of one patient that a Swiss hair transplant surgeon (Dr. Ralph Trüeb) saw in his clinic. The title is spectacular -- but also deceiving because it doesn't indicate this is a case report:
Case reports are among the weakest types of medical evidence. This article is mostly speculation and contributes no systematic evidence. From the abstract:
The first three authors are all affiliated with Dr. Trüeb's hair clinic near Zürich, Switzerland. The fourth author lists an affiliation with the Dermatology department of a university hospital in Brazil.
The article was published in the journal
Skin Appendage Disorders, a dermatology journal with a 50% acceptance rate:
https://www.karger.com/Journal/Leaflet/261870
One of the editors is Antonella Tosti, a dermatologist at University of Miami who has a record of
defending finasteride's safety. She has numerous relationships to the pharma industry and took over $82,000 in payments from pharma companies in the past seven years (see
OpenPaymentsData). In the past Dr. Tosti has taken payments from Propecia maker Merck (disclosed in her publications).
Dr. Trüeb has written another article that cannot be called a scientific article:
The article on post-finasteride syndrome has an attention-grabbing title but contributes no new evidence that would help understand or rule out post-finasteride syndrome. It's best viewed as a sensational, unscientific opinion piece."