What do systematic reviews say?

Minoxidil 2% vs minoxidil 5%

Minoxidil 2% showed no clear difference in adverse events compared with minoxidil 5% (low certainty).

• Interventions for female pattern hair loss 2016 · Cochrane Headline outcomes only
  RR 1.02 [0.91, 1.2]
  4 studies · 1006 participants
  Low

Minoxidil vs placebo

Minoxidil showed no clear difference in adverse events compared with placebo (low certainty).

• Interventions for female pattern hair loss 2016 · Cochrane Headline outcomes only
  RR 1.24 [0.82, 1.87]
  4 studies · 727 participants
  Low

Minoxidil vs placebo

• Treatments for alopecia areata: a network meta‐analysis 2023 · Cochrane Headline outcomes only
  no estimate extracted
  4 studies · 304 participants
  Very low

Summary of findings table ‐ Contact immunotherapy (diphencyprone) + hair growth stimulants (minoxidil) vs contact immunotherapy (diphencyprone)

• Treatments for alopecia areata: a network meta‐analysis 2023 · Cochrane Headline outcomes only
  no estimate extracted
  1 study · 30 participants
  Very low

Summary of findings table ‐ Contact immunotherapy (diphencyprone or squaric acid dibutil ester) vs hair growth stimulants (minoxidil)

The review found no eligible studies for this question.

• Treatments for alopecia areata: a network meta‐analysis 2023 · Cochrane Headline outcomes only
  no estimate extracted
  Studies not reported
  No studies found