These treatments can sometimes have a drying effect, called the "straw effect". If this happens, you will need to change your treatment shampoo or use it less frequently and replace it with a mild shampoo. Many shampoos are available without a prescription, so ask your pharmacist for advice and to help you find the right one for you. Whereas shampoo for dry dandruff will help fight dandruff while providing the hydration needed for a dry and irritated scalp.

Different anti-dandruff shampoos have different actions (to fight oily or dry dandruff) and different ingredients (zinc pyrithione, piroctone olamine, selenium sulfide or salicylic acid). For simple to moderate dandruff conditions, i.e. mild desquamation with a little inflammation, treatment consists of using a suitable anti-dandruff shampoo, which must above all be used according to the instructions, i.e. applied correctly and regularly, and left on for the right amount of time. Shampoos based on ciclopirox olamine (4,5) are applied two or three times a week for four weeks. They provide anti-fungal and anti-inflammatory action. They are just as effective as ketoconazole. Miconazole nitrate shampoos (4) act in the same way as ketoconazole shampoos and their dosage is identical.