Tretinoin for Hair Loss: The Latest Research

Tretinoin is usually reserved for your skincare routine, but there’s some evidence that suggests using tretinoin for hair loss may be a thing, too.

If you’re exploring a new addition to your hair routine, you might have heard that tretinoin can stimulate hair growth and slow down hair thinning. 

According to research, topical tretinoin may — we repeat, may — increase hair regrowth when used in combination with minoxidil. But further studies are needed. 

Read on to dive into what the science says so far about tretinoin for hair loss, whether tretinoin can cause hair loss and what other hair loss treatments are available.

Tretinoin is a vitamin A derivative and part of the retinoid family, sold under the brand name Retin-AⓇ. It’s used for anti-aging and to treat acne, both topically and orally.

It’s possibly one of the most potent retinoids out there — it’s even stronger than retinol, an ingredient found in many anti-aging serums.

Topical tretinoin is approved by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for the treatment of:

• Acne vulgaris

• Photoaging (to reduce wrinkles, roughness and liver spots)

Oral tretinoin is FDA-approved for conditions like:

• Acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL)

• Moderate to severe acne and cystic acne

Tretinoin can also be prescribed off-label (which is when a medication is prescribed for something that it’s not FDA-approved for) to treat conditions like:

• Psoriasis

• Flat warts

• Early stretch marks

So, as you can see, tretinoin uses are primarily in skincare — not hair.

We know that tretinoin can help your skin in a variety of ways, but what about your hair? Well, there’s not much research on tretinoin for hair growth.

The research we do have concerns minoxidil, a popular FDA-approved treatment for androgenetic alopecia (also known as male-pattern baldness and female-pattern hair loss).

Off-label, minoxidil is used to treat other hair loss conditions like:

• Alopecia areata

• Chemotherapy-induced hair loss

• Traction alopecia

• Telogen effluvium (which can be caused by severe stress, malnutrition, and physical illness)

Why are we talking about minoxidil all of a sudden? Well, tretinoin can increase the absorption of minoxidil. This might boost the effect minoxidil has on hair growth.

This tretinoin minoxidil combination sounds as though it could be a match for the ages. But more research is needed to know for sure.

Here’s what the research has found so far:

• Tretinoin could allow you to use minoxidil once a day, not twice. A 2007 clinical trial compared two treatments in men with male pattern baldness. One group used a combined solution of 5% minoxidil and 0.01% tretinoin and a second group used 5% minoxidil alone. Both groups experienced hair growth, with no statistically significant differences between the groups. But the group using the combined minoxidil and tretinoin treatment only applied the treatment once a day, whereas the minoxidil-only treatment was applied twice a day. So, tretinoin might not enhance hair growth, but it could take that second treatment off your to-do list.

• Tretinoin could improve your response to minoxidil. Minoxidil can be an effective hair loss treatment, but it doesn’t work for everyone. Tretinoin could change that. A 2019 study found that 43 percent of participants who were initially predicted to be nonresponders to minoxidil responded to the treatment after five days of 0.1% tretinoin application.

• Tretinoin could increase hair growth. Finally, the juicy stuff. A 2004 article highlighted older research that found that 0.025% tretinoin combined with 0.5% minoxidil led to visible hair growth in 66 percent of patients tested. The researchers said that people may want to try minoxidil by itself first and only add in tretinoin if they’re not satisfied with the results. But before we start breaking out the tretinoin, we’ve got to tell you that this study is very old and very small.

All of this, plus a super-old study published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology in 1986 is not enough to confidently say there are major, science-backed findings around the benefits of tretinoin for hair growth.

So, what can we learn from this? Well, much more research is needed before we can say anything definitively. And it’s not clear if tretinoin can increase hair growth on its own, but it might potentially enhance the effects of minoxidil.

Topical tretinoin is generally safe as long as you use it as prescribed, when it's prescribed to you. Still, you might experience a few side effects.

Common side effects of topical tretinoin for hair loss include:

• Itching, stinging skin

• Severe dryness of the skin

• Skin peeling flaking, which might look like dandruff if you use it on your scalp

• Skin discoloration

• Skin irritation

• Allergic reactions

• Sun sensitivity

• Sensitivity to hair products containing alcohol

When it comes to using tretinoin for hair loss, it’s important to avoid using harsh chemicals on your scalp and hair, as this could lead to further irritation and skin damage.

Avoid hair care products that contain alcohol and other potentially irritating chemicals. Rather, opt for gentle shampoos and conditioners.

No, tretinoin isn’t FDA-approved for hair growth promotion. The FDA also hasn’t approved tretinoin for scalp concerns.

Currently, topical tretinoin is only FDA-approved for anti-aging treatments and acne treatments. Oral tretinoin is FDA-approved for conditions like acute promyelocytic leukemia and moderate to severe acne and cystic acne.

Any use of tretinoin for hair growth would be off-label, and remember, the jury’s still out on whether it works or not.

Google “hair loss” and just about anything else and you’ll find someone claiming there’s a link, either on a forum or on TikTok. But does tretinoin cause hair loss?

In short, it doesn’t look like it.

Hair loss isn’t listed as a common side effect of topical tretinoin. No studies that have found a link between topical tretinoin and hair loss — at least, not yet.

But there is some research linking hair loss to the oral form of the medication, and alopecia (hair loss) is listed as a common reaction in oral tretinoin.

One study found that lab-grown human scalp hair follicles stopped growing when they were exposed to all-trans retinoic acid (tretinoin). About 80 percent of the hair follicles exposed to tretinoin prematurely entered a catagen-like stage in hair growth, compared to just 30 percent of the control group.

In less clinical terms, catagen is the transition phase in the hair growth cycle when hair follicles get smaller and your hair is one step closer to shedding.

But before you panic, these findings around tretinoin and hair loss is linked to oral tretinoin, not topical tretinoin treatments. So, there’s that.

Science may not be able to tell us yet whether tretinoin definitely helps with hair loss. But there are other hair loss treatments to consider — including ones that have more robust evidence proving that they can reduce hair loss.

Let’s look at a few of these options.

Minoxidil

We’ve already covered how tretinoin may make minoxidil more effective, but minoxidil is a valid treatment on its own.

Topical minoxidil is FDA-approved for male-pattern baldness and works by shortening the telogen phase (the resting phase) of hair growth. This extends the anagen phase (the growing phase).

It also stimulates blood flow to the scalp, ensuring that your hair follicles get the nutrients they need. This might increase hair regrowth.

Also sold under the brand name Rogaine®, minoxidil can stimulate new hair growth and prevent further hair loss. You can get this treatment in many forms, including topical minoxidil foam and minoxidil solution.

Finasteride

Like minoxidil, finasteride is also FDA-approved to treat male-pattern baldness.

Finasteride works because it stops testosterone from being converted into dihydrotestosterone (DHT), a hormone linked to hair loss. Typically, DHT harms your hair follicles, leading to that receding hairline or crown baldness many men are familiar with.

A 2022 study found that topical finasteride increased hair count after 24 weeks of use compared to a placebo. And a 2019 study spanning 10 years found that 91.5 percent of participants saw an improvement in hair growth when taking oral finasteride.

You can use finasteride as an oral tablet or as a topical solution, usually in the form of a spray.

Combined Minoxidil and Finasteride

Research shows that a combined minoxidil and finasteride treatment can be more effective for male pattern hair loss than treatment with just one of these products. We offer the best of both worlds in our topical finasteride & minoxidil spray.

Hair Growth Supplements

Nutritional deficiencies may lead to hair loss. Eating a balanced diet is an excellent way to support your hairline.

But if you have a nutrient deficiency and struggle to get enough vitamins and minerals through your diet, a supplement could help.  For example, our biotin gummies are packed with vitamins A to E.

Hair Care Products

The right hair care products can help your mane look healthy and full.

Use a volumizing shampoo and volumizing conditioner to give thin hair a boost, or try our thickening shampoo with saw palmetto for fuller-looking locks.

Tight hairstyles and harsh chemicals can put strain on your hair follicles, causing hair breakage and a type of hair loss called traction alopecia. To avoid this, steer clear of hairstyles that pull on your hair (looking at you, man bun), as well as at-home coloring, perming, chemical straightening, and relaxing.

Not sure which hair loss treatment to opt for? Start by speaking with a healthcare professional, like your primary care provider or a dermatologist.

An expert can figure out what type of hair loss you’re experiencing — whether that’s the standard male-pattern baldness or alopecia caused by a traumatic event, for example. From here, they can recommend the best hair loss treatments for you.

Looking for a hairline fix? There’s very little evidence that it could help, so we’d rather suggest opting for a science-backed hair loss treatment like minoxidil and/or finasteride.

Let’s recap the key points:

• Tretinoin may make minoxidil more effective. There isn’t much research into tretinoin as a hair loss treatment by itself. But it could give minoxidil a boost, or at least let you use minoxidil less often — small wins.

• There’s no evidence linking tretinoin and hair loss. Despite what you might read online, topical tretinoin isn’t linked to hair loss. Hair loss is a potential side effect of oral tretinoin — but that’s not the kind you’d be using for your hair.

• Consider hair loss treatments with more science behind them. Keep tretinoin for your skin and consider the FDA-approved treatments minoxidil and finasteride instead — or a powerful combo of the two.

We have a wide range of hair loss treatments, from topical sprays to oral medications, that can help you achieve healthier, fuller-looking hair.

To figure out the best way forward, start by booking online consultation with a licensed healthcare provider. They can assess your hair loss and give you medical advice on how best to tackle it.