title: Finasteride-associated male infertility.
abstract: Finasteride is a potent and specific inhibitor of the 5alpha-reductase enzyme in men. Clinical studies have shown that finasteride 1mg/day is effective for promoting hair growth in men with male pattern hair loss. However, there is a concern about the use of finasteride, especially in young fertile patients, because of its action on testosterone metabolism. This paper describes 3 cases of young patients who had very poor seminal quality during finasteride treatment (1 mg/day), and their seminal quality greatly improved after cessation of finasteride treatment. Two of them presented with a left varicocele and the other was obese. We hypothesize that finasteride may not dramatically change the spermatogenesis process in healthy men, but in patients with conditions related to infertility, an amplification of the negative influence of finasteride could occur. Future studies should be done to clarify the extent of the effect of finasteride in patients fertility problems.
authors.affiliation: Human Reproduction Unit, Albert Einstein Jewich Hospital, São Paulo, SP, Brazil. glinas@terra.com.br
authors.forename: Sidney
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Glina
authors.forename: Paulo Augusto
authors.initials: PA
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.forename: Ricardo
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Saade
authors.forename: Nelson Rodrigues
authors.initials: NR
authors.lastname: Netto
authors.forename: Jonathas Borges
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Soares
authors.forename: Andrea Giannotti
authors.initials: AG
authors.lastname: Galuppo
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000505:Alopecia / Q000188:drug therapy*; D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors / Q000009:adverse effects*; D018120:Finasteride / Q000009:adverse effects*; D006801:Humans; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000139:chemically induced* / Q000175:diagnosis; D008297:Male; D013091:Spermatogenesis / Q000187:drug effects*
chemical_list: D004791:Enzyme Inhibitors; D018120:Finasteride