RU-58841 scalp irritation after 3 weeks, anyone else?

Posted by tiredmira in Safety & Side Effects - 1 points, 4 comments.

So I started RU-58841 about three weeks ago, 50 mg/mL in a standard vehicle, applying daily to my hairline and crown. The first two weeks were honestly fine, maybe a little tingle right after application that faded fast.

Then around week three my scalp got noticeably angry. Red patches, flaking, and a real itchy/burning feeling that stuck around for hours after I put it on. It is concentrated right where I apply it most, so I am fairly sure it is the RU itself and not just my shampoo or anything else I changed.

I stopped for five days, symptoms mostly cleared, then tried again at half the volume and it came back within two days. I am not trying to power through this, that seems dumb for a topical research chem.

Has anyone dealt with this and figured out a vehicle or carrier that is easier on the scalp? I have read propylene glycol can be part of the issue. Curious what worked for other people before I write the whole thing off. Also going to get bloodwork just to be safe even though it is supposedly local only.

Comments

• weekendnate: Propylene glycol is a common irritant in RU solutions, so swapping to an ethanol and distilled water mix at maybe 60/40 with the powder can help a lot of people. Glycerin based vehicles tend to feel gentler too, though they do not spread as evenly. For me personally, what made the biggest difference was cutting back to every other day for a couple of weeks, then slowly working back up. Daily application right out of the gate seemed to be what tipped my scalp over. If you are still getting redn
• tiredmira: Yeah the every other day ramp up is basically what I should have done from the start, I went straight to daily because I did not want to wait. I will try that when things calm down. Glycerin is interesting, I have only ever used PG based stuff so I do not have a comparison point. Is the spreadability issue mostly just annoying or does it actually mess with how evenly it absorbs? And good call on the concentration, I am using 50 mg/mL because that is what I had on hand, but maybe starting lower
• quiet_ironman: Yeah I ran into the same thing – my scalp started burning after a couple weeks at 50 mg/mL. I switched to an ethanol‑distilled water base (about 60/40) and cut back to every other day for ten days, then eased back up. The redness cleared up and I’ve been fine since. 🔬
• tiredmira: Interesting, the ethanol/distilled water mix is one I hadn't tried yet, I was using a PG-heavy carrier so that might honestly be the whole problem. Cutting back to every other day makes sense too, kinda wish I'd done that instead of just halving the volume. I'm gonna try your ratio and start at EOD, will report back on whether the redness stays away 🥗

Community discussion - research and educational context only. Not medical advice.