Alopecia areata has been reported to be accompanied by abnormal autoimmune dysfunction. We examined the expression of cutaneous lymphocyte-associated antigen (CLA), which is a skin-specific lymphocyte homing receptor, in the peripheral blood lymphocytes and skin of patients with alopecia areata. In the patients' peripheral blood, the percentage of CLA-positive CD4+ or CD8+ lymphocytes, was sign...

Background: Alopecia Areata (AA) is a skin disease which affects 0.2 % of general population. Unlike its little physical impairment, Alopecia areata causes a lot of cosmetic problems but most clinicians do not pay attention to mood disorders and the impaired quality of life as the consequences of disease. Objectives: To evaluate depression and quality of life in Iranian patients with Alopecia a...

Background: Autoimmune mechanisms are involved in the etiology of Alopecia areata. It is also shown that Selenium has some effects on regulation of autoimmune mechanisms. Objective: To compare the plasma level of Selenium between those with and without Alopecia areata. Patients and Methods: In this case-control study, 29 patients with Alopecia areata referred to Razi hospital in Tehran, a...

The Third International Research Workshop on Alopecia Areata was held in Washington DC on November 5, 1998. The conference was organized jointly by the National Alopecia Areata Foundation and the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases with organizers Vera H. Price, Alan Moshell, Kurt S. Stenn, Madeleine Duvic, Lowell A. Goldsmith, Michael J. Cork, and Rudolf Happl...

Topical immunotherapy is effective for severe alopecia areata. However, there are patients with alopecia areata refractory to topical immunotherapy alone. We tried SADBE (squaric acid dibutylester) topical immunotherapy combined with topical dry ice cryotherapy, carpronium chloride (a parasympathetic nerve stimulant) and/or oral cepharanthin (a biscoclaur alkaloid) in alopecia areata refractory...

AA: alopecia areata AU: alopecia universalis IL: interleukin SALT: Severity of Alopecia Tool INTRODUCTION Alopecia areata (AA) is an autoimmune disease distinguished by the appearance of nonscarring hair loss. Initially characterized by oval or round patches of hair loss, the disease can progress to multiple clinical presentations, including the alopecia universalis (AU) subtype in which there ...

Background: Alopecia areata is a common disorder of hair occurring on any hair bearing site of the body and having a great psychosocial impact. Aims: To assess the demographic pattern, clinical aspects, associations and therapeutic response of AA in a tertiary care teaching hospital. Materials & methods: All patients diagnosed with alopecia areata were included in the study. With due consent, t...

BACKGROUND Alopecia can be a manifestation of mycosis fungoides (MF) and Sézary syndrome (SS), but the prevalence is unknown. OBJECTIVE We sought to describe the clinicopathologic presentation and molecular features of alopecia in patients with MF/SS. METHODS A retrospective chart review of a prospectively collected MF/SS database was used to identify patients with alopecia. The National Al...

In this article we discuss the propedeutic aspects of alopecia areata, especially those found by dermatoscopy, an invaluable tool for diagnosis of the condition. Dermatoscopy facilitates the early detection of the characteristic changes in alopecia areata hair such as exclamation-point hairs, cadaverous hair, fuzzy hair, vellus type hair and yellow spots.