Journal of

Background and Aim: Androgenetic alopecia is an extremely common disorder affecting both men and women. The incidence is generally considered to be greater in males than females, although some evidence suggests that the apparent differences in incidence may be a reflection of different expression in males and females. This genetically determined disorder is progressive through the gradual conversion of terminal hairs into indeterminate hairs and finally to vellus hairs. Patients have a reduction in the terminal-to-vellus hair ratio, normally at least 2:1. Following miniaturization of the follicles, fibrous tracts remain. Patients with this disorder usually have a typical distribution of hair loss.
Methods: This is a cross sectional study that conducted in Isfahan health center in 2007-2008 .Using simple random sampling, we selected 1800 women in urban health center areas for hair loss. We evaluated the type of hair loss by Ludwig classification. The data was collected through administration of a specifically designed questionnaire and was analyzed using SPSS software. The chi-square and student tests were used for data analysis.

Results: According to results of this study the of 1800 women, 712 (39.6%) had hair loss. Mean age of females who had hair loss was 50.4±13 years.
Conclusion: Thyroid disorders, ferritin serum level and androgenic hormones may play role in hair loss and their existance should be assessed.

Background and Aim: Hair loss is a chronic and frequent dermatological condition. It negatively affects the psychological status, social relationships and daily activities of the patients The aim of this study was to evaluate the prevalnce of depression in women with hair loss in a referral dematology clinic in Yazd, Iran.

Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted from March 21 to June 21, 2015. Fifty-four women suffering from hair loss referred to the Shahid Sadoughi Dermatology Clinic in Yazd were recruited. Depression assessed by using the Beck Depression Inventory. Data were analyzed using versioin 18 of PASW (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA) and Fisher's exact test was used for comparing proportions in different groups.

Results: The mean ± standard deviation score of depression was 16.1±13.5. The study showed that 67% of hair loss patients were experiencing depression. While not statitically significant, frequency of depression seems to be associated with the level of education (P=0.052). There was no associatioin between the frequency of depression and age, marital status, previous medical history, or drug use.

Conclusion: This study showed that depression is highly frequent among women with hair loss. Beauty is crucial for most women and feeling the lack of beauty and not being attractive decrease their social interaction. More effective treatment of hair loss may improve depression and community relations, and consequently result in higher quality of life in a hair loss patient.

Background and Aim: Hair loss is a common issue among men and women. Studies have shown that 1-25 (OH) vit D affects differentiation in normal follicles and hair growth, through effect on the translation of genes. The aim of this study was to assess vitamin D₃ level in patients suffering from hair loss between the age of 18 to 50 years.

Methods: This cross sectional study was conducted on 100 patients including 27 men and 73 women suffering from hair loss. Cases were chosen from one of the educational hospitals of Islamic Azad University, Tehran Medical Branch. Blood samples were obtained from the patients and were sent to the laboratory for assessment of vitamin D₃ serumic levels.

Results: The average of patients’ age was 29.5±8.5 years. The average serum level of vitamin D in patients was 17.26±14.5 ng/mL. Sixty-six percent of patients suffering from hair loss had vitamin D deficiency as well. The prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency in women was considerably more than men (P<0.001).

Conclusion: Prevalence of vitamin D deficiency among people suffeing from hair loss is noteworthy.

Platelet-rich plasma (PRP) is a solution derived from whole blood that is enriched in the platelet fraction. Platelets serve as a reservoir of growth factors and cytokines. When platelets are activated in vivo, signaling molecules are released into the immediate microenvironment and activate receptors for various pathways. PRP has been applied to bedsores to promote healing. Over the last decade, it has been used as a valuable therapeutic method in various specialties such as maxillofacial surgery, plastic surgery, orthopedics and sports medicine. Only recently has PRP been utilized for dermatologic purposes, psrticularly, for the treatment of male and female pattern hair loss.

In this review, we discuss molecular and cellular pathways up-regulated by PRP important in hair folliculogenesis, and examine clinical evidence from all previously published studies involving the use of PRP for pattern hair loss.

Background and Aim: Hair loss is one of the most common problems among the skin and hair related diseases. Hair loss can lead to anxiety, depression, low self-esteem and dissatisfaction with appearance.
 

Methods: Patients with androgenetic alopecia who met the eligibility criteria entered the study. Participants were asked to randomly apply a solution of valproic acid 8.3% or a solution of minoxidil 5% on the affected areas according to the treatment protocol (twice a day). Before and 2 months after treatment, the participants were evaluated. The studied indices included the number of hair follicles in the specified area, the number of velus hairs, the number of terminal hairs, the average hair thickness, and the percentage of hairs in the anagen and telogen phases, as well as the skin reactions in the area. Hairs were examined at the beginning of the study and at 2 months after treatment using Foto Finder-trichoscale device.
 

Results: Two months after treatment compared to baseline in the valproic group, anagen hair count index (P=0.02), general hair count index (P=0.03), and terminl hair count index (P=0.012) showed significant changes. While telogen hair count (P=0.059) and vellus hair count (P=0.097) did not show significant changes. These changes were more significated in minoxidil group.

Conclusion: 8.3% valproic acid solution showed positive effects in increasing the number of hairs and decreasing the percentage of telogen hairs. Due to the delayed mechanism of valproic acid, the duration of treatment with this compound should be considered longer than minoxidil as a positive control.