I’ve done a scan of PFS research recently and am pleased to find the body of research is becoming more in-depth and systematic. Someone just asked me for a selection of papers. I thought I’d also share it here. I’m aware that some of these may have already been posted in this forum.
All but the first and last papers below are systematic reviews and/or meta-analyses, which are generally considered more authoritative than individual studies.
Patient Information PROPECIA (finasteride) Tablets. Merck & Co., Inc. (2013).
Includes adverse effects that persist after discontinuing the medication.
Belknap, SM et al. (2013). Adverse Event Reporting in Clinical Trials of Finasteride for Androgenic Alopecia: A Meta-Analysis. JAMA Dermatology, 151 (6): 600–606. doi:10.1001/jamadermatol.2015.36
https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamadermatology/fullarticle/2212246
Traish AM et al. (2015). Adverse effects of 5α-reductase inhibitors: What do we know, don’t know, and need to know? Reviews in Endocrine and Metabolic Disorders, 16 (3): 177–198. doi:10.1007/s11154-015-9319-y
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11154-015-9319-y#citeas
Liu, L et al. (2016). Effect of 5α-Reductase Inhibitors on Sexual Function: A Meta-Analysis and Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials. Journal of Sexual Medicine, 13 (9): 1297–1310. doi:10.1016/j.jsxm.2016.07.006
https://jsm.jsexmed.org/retrieve/pii/S1743609516303149
Corona, G et al. (2017). Sexual dysfunction in subjects treated with inhibitors of 5α-reductase for benign prostatic hyperplasia: a comprehensive review and meta-analysis. Andrology, 5 (4): 671–678. doi:10.1111/andr.12353
https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/andr.12353
Zakhem, GA et al. (2019). Sexual dysfunction in men taking systemic dermatologic medication: A systematic review. Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, 81 (1): 163–172. doi:10.1016/j.jaad.2019.03.043
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0190962219304591
Lee, S et al. (2019). Adverse Sexual Effects of Treatment With Finasteride or Dutasteride for Male Androgenetic Alopecia: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. Acta Dermato-Venereologica, 99: 12-17. doi:10.2340/00015555-3035
https://www.medicaljournals.se/acta/content/abstract/10.2340/00015555-3035
Gormley, GJ et al (1992). The Effect of Finasteride in Men with Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia. The New England Journal of Medicine, 327 (17): 1185–1191. doi:10.1056/NEJM199210223271701
https://www.nejm.org/doi/10.1056/NEJM199210223271701
This paper is significant because it shows that adverse sexual effects were apparent even in 1992, nearly 30 years ago. The lead author and five other co-authors were from Merck Laboratories. They found “a higher incidence of decreased libido, impotence, and ejaculatory disorders in the finasteride-treated groups.”