51012 Clinical and pathophysiological study of seborrheic capitis: focus on brain-skin connection

This study investigates the pathophysiology of seborrheic dermatitis (SD) with a focus on the brain-skin connection, involving 80 SD patients and 13 controls. It highlights that patients with scalp SD experience significantly worse quality of life and sleep, as indicated by higher scores on the Dermatology Life Quality Index, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and Scalpdex. Sleep-wake metrics from wearable devices showed lower sleep efficiency and longer awake and REM sleep periods in SD patients. Immunofluorescence staining revealed increased nerve fiber density, mast cell infiltration, and expression of pruritogenic mediators in SD patients' scalp tissue. The study underscores the role of the nervous system and psychosocial factors, such as stress and sleep, in the pathogenesis of SD, illustrating local neuroimmune modulations in affected individuals.