PROPECIA FDA MedWatch Voluntary U.S. Reports Summary

These tables and charts are created from 260 U.S. reports for PROPECIA (FINASTERIDE) voluntarily reported by individuals directly to the FDA via the MedWatch Reporting System from 2004 through July 30, 2026. Events listed on this page represent serious and often rare adverse events reported to the FDA, and often do not represent typical side effects for the medication. Find common side effects on the most recent official drug label.

For a summary of adverse events including mandatory reports submitted by pharmaceutical companies (all countries and all reporter types) to the FAERS database, View FDA FAERS PROPECIA Report.

Top Adverse Events Reported with PROPECIA (from U.S. FDA Medwatch Reports)

	Side Effect	# of FDA Reports
1	ERECTILE DYSFUNCTION	109
2	DEPRESSION	77
3	LOSS OF LIBIDO	62
4	ANXIETY	58
5	LIBIDO DECREASED	58
6	INSOMNIA	41
7	COGNITIVE DISORDER	40
8	SEXUAL DYSFUNCTION	40
9	FATIGUE	38
10	FEELING ABNORMAL	33
11	SUICIDAL IDEATION	24
12	TESTICULAR PAIN	24
13	DISTURBANCE IN ATTENTION	23
14	MUSCLE ATROPHY	21
15	MEMORY IMPAIRMENT	20
16	PANIC ATTACK	20
17	PENILE SIZE REDUCED	19
18	GENITAL HYPOAESTHESIA	17
19	AMNESIA	16
20	DIZZINESS	16
21	PENIS DISORDER	16
22	MENTAL IMPAIRMENT	14
23	LOSS OF ALL PLEASURE	13
24	BREAST ENLARGEMENT MALE	13
25	PEYRONIE^S DISEASE	13

Search all MedWatch Reports by Keyword:

PROPECIA Total Medwatch Safety Reports by Patient Sex

Male	Female	Unknown	Total
251	4	5	260

Medwatch Reporter Type	Count
Consumer	151
Physician	11
Pharmacist	4
Other Health Professional	4

Top Indications

Androgenetic alopecia
HAIR LOSS
Hair disorder

Type of Outcome Reported
Serious: 229
Not Serious: 31
Note: A serious outcome means the adverse event resulted in death, a life threatening condition, hospitalization, disability, congenital anomaly, or other serious condition.

Suspected Role
Primary Suspect: 260
Concomitant Drugs: 89
Note: A single MedWatch report can list more than one drug. This summary includes PROPECIA identified as the suspect drug or as a concomitantly taken drug.

FDA Safety-Related Labeling Changes

PROPECIA (FINASTERIDE) Rx Drug:
FDA Safety-related Labeling Changes

Have experience (good or bad) with PROPECIA? Rate PROPECIA at Ask a Patient.

For serious adverse events, report them to the FDA by contacting the drug manufacturer or report directly through the MedWatch voluntary reporting form.

NOTES

This report, created by AskaPatient.com, is derived from U.S. drug-related adverse event cases that were reported directly to the FDA using the voluntary MedWatch online or paper reporting system. MedWatch is the voluntary FDA system for consumers, physicians, and others to directly report adverse reactions. The Medwatch initiative was launched in 1993 as a voluntary reporting program for consumers, physicians and other healthcare practitioners.

After processing the received forms, the FDA adds the MedWatch reports to the FDA Adverse Events Reporting System(or FAERS database.) Click here for the complete FAERS report summary, which includes mandatory reports submitted by pharmaceutical companies (worldwide) combined with the MedWatch reports. MedWatch Reports only represent about 5% of the FAERS database. For more, read "Does the FDA's Rapidly Growing Database of Adverse Events Improve Drug Safety?"

The data in this report was obtained from Open FDA. Data was last updated to include reports through January 27, 2026. The reactions, side effects, or "adverse events," represent up to the 20 most frequently occuring events in the database for a drug related to the event.

Open FDA states that it only includes the most recent version of a case report. It also adds the disclaimer: "Do not rely on Open FDA to make decisions regarding medical care. While we make every effort to ensure that data is accurate, you should assume all results are unvalidated."

FDA uses the "MedDRA" classification system to describe reported adverse reactions. MedDRA is a standardized medical terminology that facilitates sharing of regulatory information internationally. In some cases, "patient friendly" terms for the layman designated by MedDRA have been substituted for medical jargon. Please contact us with questions about this report.