MG217 Psoriasis 3% Coal Tar Shampoo and Conditioner Scalp Treatment. 4 fl oz

I've tried many products, and only the tars seems to work for me. Generally I use Neutrogena T-Gel, and it seems to work. However, it's a little thick and doesn't lather well, so I thought I'd try something different. I LOVE this product. In this review I'm going to compare to TGEL.It's thinner than TGEL, therefore is easier to get out of container. However, when you go to lather it up it makes a thicker lather and stays on your head better. The instructions for both are to leave it on for a few minutes, which I generally do, but my TGEL starts running down and often gets in my eyes. For some reason, this just stays on my head better, like the lather is more firm. It also rinses cleaner. It smells like tar shampoo, which is not pleasant, the smell is a bit stronger than TGEL, but because I rinse it clean and then use conditioner, I don't notice it after I've rinsed it off.It seems to be about as effective. I've got a pretty strong case - lots of itching and flaking. All the regular "Head and Shoulder" and similar products didn't work at all. Even a bar my dermatologist gave me was useless... so I feel kind of stuck with the tar shampoos. Both the Neutrogena and the MG217 are about 95 percent effective. I still have a couple of 1" or so patches of skin under my hairline (around my temples) that will flake off if I scratch there, but it doesn't itch and if I leave it be it doesn't flake off on it's own. One thing I have not tried yet is pine tar.The price is comparable. I order on subscribe and save, so I save 15%. For 8 oz. it is just under $6. On Walmart I get can TGEL 4.4 oz for about $6.50. Amazon has a seller right now with a deal on 4.4 oz TGEL for $2.54 which is great. They also have several sellers offing it from $6 to $15. I go through the TGEL quicker because it's so thick and I have to use more, so I'm finding the MG217 is lasting me longer.I have also used WalMart's equate version. I find it even thicker, smellier, and less effective. I don't think it is a good alternative.After trying this product, it's worth the slightly higher expense.1-1-2019. I have now tried several pine tar shampoos - the smell is not as unpleasant, but stronger and harder to wash out. Of those I've tried (2) they were more expensive, less effective and smellier. But, I have a NEW FAVORITE. I was out of town and in need of a tar shampoo. I went to CVS and the only one available was the CVS 5% generic T-Gel. It is my new favorite. It doesn't smell as bad, has a perfect thickness, lathers nicely, rinses out cleaner, and works great. I still like MG 217, but to my surprise CVS 5% is now my #1.

The smell is horrid. I’ve only used it twice. I’d use it more, but I’m sure my coworkers and clients will think that I live in an old oil filled gutter next to a power plant. It’s not good if you work with the public, like myself, and want to smell clean.

Let me first explain my scalp before I started using this product. It was so very itchy I was miserable. Scratching large chunks of dead scalp was the norm for me. I gave up on wearing black as it was so embarrassing. When I pulled my hair into a ponytail you would see big round dry circle patches on the sides. This product is amazing. Yes ... I smell like tar ... but ... no more flakes or itch. I have struggled for 30 years and now after 3 weeks my scalp is great!! I use it twice a week. I try to avoid washing my hair in between as much as possible. I bought the round circle scrubby scalp brush as well. Try this smelly stuff, it works!!

I bought this for my husband's psoriasis. Let me say tht it does smell terrible. He has had good results. My only issue is not to use too often as the box says it's known to cause cancer in the state of California.

Shipping and seller was fine, but this product dries your hair out and leaves your scalp itchy. I purchased this for my daughter, she had to wash her hair continuously just to get this product off of her scalp. Save your money, awful product..

as expected. I have used non-tar products and coal tar seems to work better. wish there was something even better than that.

I've had scalp psoriasis for about 20 years now. I've treated it with varying success with topical steroids (primarily clobetasol) and have not had luck with other coal tar shampoos. I don't remember what prompted it, but I decided to try coal tar again a couple months ago and read a bunch of reviews. My scales were mostly around the hairline and behind my ears, fairly severe in those areas, which meant that I never could wear my long hair up in public.I used the shampoo every day for about two weeks - within a week things were greatly improved, but still noticeable. I felt like maybe that would be an acceptable result, though not earth shattering. By two weeks, however, my scalp was completely scale free. It was a slow and subtle change, but it happened. It's been a couple of months now and I use the shampoo about twice a week. I had a small spot reoccur in my most persistent area, but I upped my usage and it went away again. Additionally, I have typically had relatively few spots on my body, but the ones I did have were pretty persistent. All but two have cleared with no additional treatment. I'm not sure if treating my scalp calmed my immune system down or if rinsing the shampoo over my body had enough of an effect, but I'll take it. I ordered the ointment for the last two spots (just started with it), but the scalp impact has been huge.Psoriasis was mostly an annoyance for me - mostly covered with hair and generally not uncomfortable other than slight itching occasionally. It was draining, though, to have to hide it all the time since it was so unsightly. I had resigned myself to always have to take it into consideration, so I'm AMAZED that anything worked this well. I have no idea how it'll do long-term, but even if it doesn't last it will have been worth it just for the temporary break from having to think about It every day.And, yes. It STINKS. It smells like an auto-body shop and lingers. If you have long hair, best to shower at night, leave on scalp for 2-3 mins, and then wash hair with something nicely scented after (I tried not to scrub roots with nice shampoo, but doesn't seem to matter much after a few minutes). Then I use a good conditioner, also with some scent. By the morning it's fine. And you do get used to the smell in the shower (first fewtimes were pretty overwhelming, though!)