Study: Propecia May Reduce Drive to Drink & Have Sex

Dr. Michael Irwig, an endocrinologist and assistant professor of medicine at George Washington University School of Medicine who conducted the study stated that the study was actually intended to understand the drug’s sexual side effects, and only looked at men 46 or under. These men had quit taking the medication for at least three months, yet continued to experience the infamous side effects of sex drive and erectile dysfunction.

The exact mechanism for the reduced alcohol consumption is not known, but Dr. Irwig suspects that Propecia interferes with the brain’s ability to make certain hormones, which are likely linked to alcohol addiction. These findings are the first of their kind to link Propecia use in men, with changes in their alcohol consumption; an effect previously only studied in male mice.

In the study, Irwig tracked 83 healthy men ages 21 to 46 who had persistent sexual side effects after they stopped taking Propecia. There were 63 men who reported drinking at least one alcoholic beverage a week before starting on Propecia, but 65% of the reported that they had cut back on their drinking habits. While 32% reported no change, only 3% increased their consumption. Eighteen men in the Propecia study completely gave up drinking.

Dr. Irwig acknowledges that subjects’ age range was less prone to alcohol consumption than others, and that some of the men in the study were wary of alcohol because of their low tolerance. As a result, they possibly stopped drinking because they thought it was decreasing their sex drive. Despite these unknown factors, Irwig is confident in the connections that his study showed.

While Irwig’s study was comprehensive, it was by no means the longest or most in-depth study of Propecia. The longest controlled study took place several years back, which observed men who had taken Propecia and a placebo pill and examined their hair loss afterward. This 5-year study was presented at the 59th Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Dermatology.

The data collected from the study featured the Propecia and placebo comparison of hair replenishment in 1,553 men, age 18 to 41, with mild-to-moderate male pattern hair loss (androgenetic alopecia) in the vertex region (top of the head). While Propecia had won over the placebo, the study had also found rather devastating side effects for the subjects.

In the initial first 12 months of the study, the following Propecia sexual side effects occurred and most of the men experienced these side effects after they ceased taking the drug. These findings showed:

• Less of sexual desire: 1.8% on Propecia vs. 1.3% on placebo
• Increased difficult in achieving erection: 1.3% on Propecia vs. 0.7% on placebo
• Semen count decreased: 0.8% on Propecia vs. 0.4% on placebo

By the end of the fifth year, the incidence of those Propecia sexual side effects was less than or equal to 0.3% in the men who continued treatment with Propecia vs. men on placebo.

Created by Merck & Co., Propecia is an oral once-a-day treatment drug for male pattern baldness. General studies estimate that less than 5% of younger men who take Propecia experience persistent sexual side effects. While not a large number, it was enough to prompt the FDA to request the drug makers to add warnings about these side effects to the label in 2012. This, unfortunately, came too late to the many men who took the drug.

If you believe that you or a loved one has been the victim of a Propecia sexual side effect, you have legal options. Please visit the Propecia Loss of Sex Drive & Sexual Dysfunction Class Action Lawsuit Investigation. There, you can submit your claim for a free legal review and if it qualifies for legal action, a seasoned Propecia lawyer will contact you for a free, no-obligation consultation. You will be guided through the litigation process at no out-of-pocket expenses or hidden fees. The Propecia attorneys working this investigation do not get paid until you do.