Baldness drug Propecia making men impotent, says study

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(CBS) Men worried about losing their hair may be losing far more than that if they take the popular drug Propecia.

A new body of research says 5 to 23 percent of the millions of men who take the drug may become impotent and have lowered sex drives because of the active ingredient finasteride. And the problem may linger years after they stop taking the drug.

The story is coming to the fore as two new studies were published in "The Journal of Sexual Medicine" this month.

Young men are being prescribed these drugs, "as hair loss treatments that may negatively impact their sexual life, possibly for a prolonged time after stopping the medication," said the journal's editor-in-chief, Dr. Irwin Goldstein, in a statement.

In one paper which analyzed previous studies, researchers led by Dr. Abdulmaged M. Traish of the Boston University School of Medicine, found a small but significant percent of men suffered from erectile dysfunction, reduced ejaculation and semen volume after taking the drug. Traish told CBS News what really worried him was the long term effects.

"What is really important is not how big or small this number is," he said. "But rather how many of these individuals will continue to experience persistent side effects, even if they discontinue the drug?"

To answer that question, Traish pointed us towards research from Dr. Michael S. Irwig, who interviewed 71 otherwise healthy men who reported sexual side effects after taking finasteride. The mean duration of the negative impact was 40 months after stopping the drug.

Irwig's study, also published in "The Journal of Sexual Medicine," had some caveats. The men were not randomly selected, but rather picked off of a popular website for problems with finasteride and the men were not tested for hormone levels.

Finasteride is also found in Proscar, a drug designed to help with prostate swelling.

The cruel irony of the findings, if they hold up, is that once men stop taking Propecia their hair loss returns, but the side effects may linger for years.

There is a class action lawsuit in Canada and a smaller suit in the States. The full studies can be found in the March issue of "The Journal of Sexual Medicine" here and here.

[propecialawyers]

Propecia was marketed by the manufacturer, Merck, as a "miracle pill" for men with hair loss. However, this "miracle" had some undisclosed strings attached in the form of harmful sexual, neurological, and hormonal side effects.

Despite receiving adverse reports almost immediately after its introduction to the market in 1997, Merck refused to add any additional warnings until the FDA ordered Merck in April of 2012. New cases are being filed against Merck to seek claims for damages as more men come forward to report their negative side effects.

PropeciaLawyers.com is a vital resource for men affected by Propecia side effects, because it offers the latest in Propecia News and informational Propecia Videos. To stay up-to-date on the most recent Propecia related news, visit www.propecialawyers.com and click on our Propecia News page to get in-depth news regarding Propecia side effects and Propecia lawsuits.

[schmidtandclark]

Our law firm (Schmidt & Clark, LLP) is actively handling a number of individual propecia lawsuits throughout the entire United States. In addition to impotence, Propecia has been linked to other serious adverse side effects including: erectile dysfunction, low libido, gynecomastia, breast cancer and prostate cancer.

We are updating our website regularly and include studies and lawsuit information. If you or a loved one has been injured by Propecia, you should visit our website to learn more about your legal rights. http://www.schmidtandclark.com/propecia