Vaniqa
Vaniqa is a 13.9% eflornithine cream that women apply twice a day to slow the regrowth of unwanted hair on the chin and upper lip; it comes in tubes.
- Category
- Skin Care · Women's Health
- Active ingredient
- Eflornithine
- Route
- Topical
- Form
- Cream
- Strengths
- 13.9%
You will receive a quality generic equivalent, depending on stock.
Shipped in a discreet, unmarked envelope.
Details
- Conditions
- Unwanted facial hair
- Therapeutic Class
- Ornithine decarboxylase inhibitor
- Pharmacological Class
- Enzyme inhibitor
- Minor Side Effects
- Stinging, Skin redness
- Moderate Side Effects
- Acne, Itching
- Dosage Forms
- Cream
- Administration Route
- Topical
- Originator
- Almirall
- Onset Time
- 4–8 weeks
- Duration
- Ongoing with treatment
- Storage Instructions
- Below 25°C.
- Age Restrictions
- Safety in children not established.
What you will receive
Vaniqa is the originator brand name, made by Almirall. We use it to identify the medicine; the pack you receive is a generic equivalent, not the original Vaniqa.
- The same active ingredient (Eflornithine) at the same strength.
- The exact brand supplied depends on what is in stock when your order ships.
FAQ
Can I buy Vaniqa by the tube?
Vaniqa pages list 13.9% tubes in quantities of 1, 2 or 3. It is generic eflornithine, not the original Vaniqa. Each page shows the price per tube in Hong Kong dollars, and larger quantities lower the price per tube.
How does Vaniqa reach Hong Kong?
Vaniqa orders reach Hong Kong by tracked courier in 5 to 9 business days, with online tracking, or by standard airmail in 14 to 21 business days, untracked. If a parcel does not arrive within its delivery window or arrives damaged, it is sent again free.
What other names is eflornithine sold under?
Vaniqa is a brand name of eflornithine, which is also sold as Eflora. Here, eflornithine can be bought online as generic Vaniqa. These are generics, not the original brand.
What happens if I stop using Vaniqa?
The effect lasts only while you keep applying it. Regrowth returns to its old pattern about eight weeks after the last application, because the cream slows new hair production rather than removing hair for good. Shaving or waxing in the meantime makes no difference to that.
Can I wear make-up over Vaniqa?
Yes. Put Vaniqa on first, onto clean, dry skin, and let it sink in for a few minutes before moisturiser, sunscreen or make-up goes on top. Applied morning and evening, it slots easily into the routine you already follow.
Which parts of the face can I treat?
It is for the face: the upper lip, the chin and the strip of skin just under the chin, where unwanted hair shows most in women. Legs, arms, chest and back are not what the cream is meant for. Apply it only to unbroken skin.
Does Vaniqa sting when you start using it?
Stinging, tingling or burning in the first few days is common and usually eases as your skin adjusts. Redness, itching and dry patches can appear too. If the skin becomes badly cracked or starts weeping, stop applying the cream.
Can I use Vaniqa straight after waxing or threading?
Yes, once the skin has calmed down. Waxing and threading can leave the area red or sore for a few hours, so wait until it looks and feels normal before smoothing the cream on, and keep it off grazed or broken skin.
About Vaniqa
Eflornithine 13.9% cream for facial hair
Vaniqa is a face cream with 13.9% eflornithine, made for women who have unwanted hair on the chin and upper lip, including the coarser male-pattern growth known as hirsutism. It does not remove hair, so shaving, plucking, waxing and threading carry on as before. What the cream changes is how fast the hair grows back.
Hair cells need an enzyme called ornithine decarboxylase to multiply quickly as each hair is built. Eflornithine blocks that enzyme, so new hairs form more slowly.
Two applications a day
Put the cream on clean, dry skin once in the morning and once in the evening, at least eight hours apart. A thin film is enough. Rub it in until no trace is left.
Let it dry before sunscreen or make-up goes on top, and try not to wash the treated skin, swim or sweat heavily for about four hours afterwards. Keep it away from the eyes, nose and mouth, and wash your hands when you finish.
If you skip an application, put the cream on once eight hours have passed since the last one. A double layer does nothing extra.
How soon does it work?
Do not judge the tube after a week. The cream works on hairs that have not grown yet, so the first sign is regrowth that comes in slower, and that usually turns up between weeks four and eight of using it twice a day.
If nothing has changed after four months, the cream is unlikely to suit you. If you stop, growth drifts back to what it was within about eight weeks.
Reactions on the skin
Most of what people notice is on the skin itself: stinging or burning, tingling, itching, redness, dryness and spots, plus slight thinning of the treated hair. These are usually mild and fade.
An allergy to the cream is rare. If lips, face or throat begin to swell, or breathing gets difficult, that is an emergency.
Storing the tube
Keep it below 25°C with the cap screwed on, and leave it out of the fridge and freezer. The 13.9% cream is the strength sold here; more on the ingredient is on the eflornithine page.
Sources
- Eflornithine: MedlinePlus Drug Information — National Library of Medicine
- Information for the user Vaniqa 11.5% cream — UK Electronic Medicines Compendium (EMC)