BACKGROUND Alopecia areata is a chronic disorder of the hair follicles and nails, of unknown etiology, with clear autoimmune components and genetic factors. Several therapeutic options have been suggested; however, no treatment is able to modify the disease course. Methotrexate is an immunosuppressant used in various dermatoses and recently introduced as a therapeutic option for alopecia areata...

A recent meta-analysis of 7 genome-wide association studies on early balding (alopecia) revealed single nucleotide polymorphism variants in the region of the amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) gene TAR DNA-binding protein 43 (TARDBP/TDP-43 ). We therefore explored the association of early-onset alopecia and ALS in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study, a large cohort of 51,529 US men. In 19...

Rodrigues M, et al. BMJ Case Rep 2017. doi:10.1136/bcr-2017-220679 Description A 15-year-old healthy adolescent girl went to her physician consultation because she was preoccupied with progressive thinning of her hair since 11 years old. In the last year, she noticed an aggravation, with an excessive hair loss. She does not have hirsutism, acne, asthenia, menstrual irregularities or weight vari...

Endovascular interventional procedures are widely used for the treatment of intracranial vascular lesions. However, they sometimes produce reversible alopecia, known as radiation-induced temporary alopecia, depending on the radiation dose. Radiation-induced temporary alopecia manifested as rectangular alopecic patches without signs of inflammation, reflects damage to the keratinocytes in the ha...

BACKGROUND Central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia is the most common form of cicatricial alopecia in African American women. Treatment options are limited and mostly aimed at halting further hair loss but rarely result in hair regrowth. Therefore, it is important to recognize early clinical signs, perform a confirmatory biopsy, and begin treatment promptly. We have observed that hair breakage...

BACKGROUND Various kinds of alopecia can show small round or oval hairless patch. Dermoscopy could be a simple, useful tool for making a correct diagnosis. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study is to investigate clinical usefulness of dermoscopy for diseases with small round or oval hairless patch on the scalp. METHODS Dermoscopic examination was performed for 148 patients with small round or ova...

We report five cases of pattern alopecia in female patients who are undergoing hormonal anticancer therapy for the prevention of recurrence of breast cancer after surgery. Three patients demonstrated male pattern alopecia with receding frontal hairlines, and two patients demonstrated female pattern alopecia without receding hairlines. The detailed clinical history showed that the pattern alopec...

Civilizational progress initially contributes to the problem of hair loss and then to alopecia as regards both frequency and therapeutic dilemmas. The work presents trichological problems which occur more rarely, i.e. drug-induced, anagen and telogen alopecia, congenital and acquired structural hair disorders, psychic disturbances concerning the hair as well as the hair during menopause. Then, ...

JL The frequency of alopecia varies with different chemotherapy regimens. According to data from Ralph M. Trüeb, MD, alopecia occurs in more than 80% of patients receiving antimicrotubule agents (eg, paclitaxel [Taxol, Bristol-Myers Squibb]), 60–100% of patients receiving topoisomerase inhibitors (eg, doxorubicin), more than 60% of patients receiving alkylators (eg, cyclophosphamide), and 10–50...

Alopecia areata is a common form of nonscarring alopecia. It affects males and females equally and has no racial predilection. It usually affects the scalp, but any hair-bearing area can be involved. It presents as patchy hair loss, loss of hair on the entire scalp (alopecia totalis), or the whole body (alopecia universalis). The histopathology varies according to the disease stage, but usually...