Introduction
Hirsutism or growth of excessive male-pattern hair in women is a common endocrine disorder affecting almost 10% of women in the United States. Primarily affecting facial areas and areas of the public region, buttocks, and thighs, hirsutism results from increased androgen levels due to factors like obesity, pcod, and ovarian tumors.

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In either condition, it becomes a source of immense embarrassment to the patient and requires effective and timely management to preserve their self-esteem. To date, Vaniqa has been regarded as the best treatment option for the condition and recommended by users and health experts worldwide.
Before understanding its popularity, it is essential to have a brief idea of the medication.
What is Vaniqa
Vaniqa is a topical application available in cream form for working on facial hair removal in hirsutism women. Using Eflornithine as its active ingredient, Vaniqa works on the ornithine decarboxylase enzyme to slow hair growth and reduce the growth intensity significantly. Manufactured by Allergan, Inc. and sold under Ornidyl in the States, Vaniqa is currently under the World Health Organisation’s list of Essential Medications because of its therapeutic potential and multiple benefits.
Why is Vaniqa cream the best
The first and foremost advantage of Vaniqa over other treatment methods is that it remains the only topical medication for hirsutism to date. Other creams like Eflornithine have been used in trials and clinical studies without achieving the desired effect.
Two randomized, double-blind studies were conducted to understand the efficacy of Vaniqa cream, including female subjects diagnosed with hirsutism of different ethnicities. Among the 594 subjects in the study, 393 were treated with Vaniqa cream, and 201 were treated with vehicle solution. Care was taken to include women having the customary tendency of removing facial hair twice a week while at the same time excluding women with severe inflammatory acne or those pregnant/breastfeeding. Vaniqa treatment with vehicle solution was continued twice daily for the next 24 weeks. Physicians assessed the improvement or worsening from the baseline condition through the Physician’s Global Assessment scale, a 5-6 point scoring system used to assess disease severity
Results were assessed 24 weeks after the initial period with special care taken every 48 hours after shaving the face, chiefly to assess improving or worsening from baseline effects. Each of these studies saw statistically significant improvement for VANIQA versus vehicle, considering their varied skin types and ethnicities. Marked improvement was seen consistently at eight weeks after initiation of treatment and continued throughout the 24 weeks of treatment. Hair growth approached pretreatment levels within eight weeks of treatment withdrawal. The lack of published literature regarding the safety and efficacy of Eflora makes it an uncertain option to increase Vaniqa’s viability as a safe bet.

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Painless and safe treatment measure

Aside from topical treatment options, oral contraceptives, antiandrogens, and laser treatment are some of the other hirsutism treatment options that dermatologists advise. None of the methods achieve the safety and effectiveness of Vaniqa cream.
Oral contraceptives work on lowering the level of androgens to reduce hair growth but are accompanied by uncomfortable side effects, making the option unfeasible on a long-term basis. Antiandrogens like Finasteride and Spironolactone directly decrease androgen production but are accompanied by long-term complications that mar their benefits.
Laser hair removal and electrolysis methods produce variable results and are painful and expensive. Similarly, depilatories and hair removal creams can sometimes lead to skin sensitivity reactions exacerbating the acne outbreak.
Vaniqa is one of the few alternatives that is painless and safe to use with the desired timing. Studies related to Eflornithine, the active ingredient of Vaniqa, have proved that it does not have contact sensitizing, photo contact allergic, or phototoxic properties and has a favorable dermal safety profile appropriate for a topical treatment to be applied routinely. Other studies have proved that it can be used as a combination treatment option with methods like microneedling to improve treatment quality.
Regular treatment of hirsutism-induced excessive facial hair with Vaniqa can enable patients to get rid of excessive hair safely and effectively and improve their quality of life.
How much time does it take to work
It usually takes 8-12 weeks for the medication to start working and 2-6 months to start noticing visible results. You are advised to apply a thin layer of the cream to affected areas of the face and adjacent areas on the chin and rub it thoroughly for best results. The treatment needs to be conducted twice daily or as per the physician’s advice. Usually, people start observing visible results within eight weeks, but in some, it may take as long as six months to observe satisfactory results.
Factors like acne, facial blistering, or pre-existing skin conditions can intensify the side effects of Vaniqa and are considered contradictory factors in its use. Additionally, some people may experience the initial side effects like redness or stinging sensation in an exacerbated manner, resulting in irregular use of the medication / discontinuing it mid-use. Most importantly, Vaniqa does not produce irreversible or permanent results. Discontinuing the medication will gradually reverse the hair loss and result in regrowth of hair at the same level as the beginning period. To stay on the safe side :
- Please consult your physician before using the medication and use it as per his advice.
- Do Not wash the medication till at least 4 hours after the application period.
- Avoid sun exposure immediately after application of Vaniqa
- Wait for at least 2 hours before applying other cosmetics or topical creams over facial areas
- If you experience symptoms of redness, tingling sensation, or swelling severely, discontinue the use of the medication and take the advice of a medical practitioner
References
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2856356/
https://www.accessdata.fda.gov/drugsatfda_docs/label/2000/21145lbl.pdf
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11705097/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3830374/
https://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hirsutism/diagnosis-treatment/drc-20354941