TLDR Oral alitretinoin can quickly regrow hair in alopecia universalis.
A 52-year-old woman with alopecia universalis (AU) experienced significant hair regrowth after treatment with oral alitretinoin. Initially, she had 100% hair loss, but after 2 months of taking 30 mg daily, she saw 45.2% regrowth, and after 4 months, 86.8% regrowth was observed. The treatment was adjusted to 10 mg daily due to headaches. This case suggested that alitretinoin could be a potential therapeutic option for AU, a condition that is typically difficult to treat and has significant psychological impacts. This was the first reported case of AU treated successfully with oral alitretinoin.
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January 2010 in “Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology”
The document says current treatments for alopecia areata do not cure or prevent it, and it's hard to judge their effectiveness due to spontaneous remission and lack of studies.
A user with alopecia totalis, borderline universalis, seeks advice on getting into a Xeljanz trial or appealing insurance for coverage. They experienced significant hair regrowth but are now seeing hair loss again and want to try Xeljanz.
The conversation discusses using Tretinoin for treating androgenic alopecia. Specific treatments mentioned include Minoxidil, Finasteride, and RU58841.
Isotretinoin may cause hair loss by increasing DHT through a precursor androgen, DHEAS. Treatments like topical antiandrogens (RU58841, pyrilutamide) and drugs increasing PPAR-y expression (pioglitazone) might prevent this hair loss.
User experienced hair growth with finasteride and minoxidil, but after using tretinoin, faced aggressive thinning and hair loss. They plan to stop tretinoin for two months to see if the problem improves.
The user experienced hair shedding and follicle shrinkage when using retinoic acid, despite trying different concentrations and frequencies. The hair loss persisted for six months but regrew after stopping the treatment.
Oral minoxidil combined with isotretinoin may improve hair loss treatment effectiveness. Tretinoin is known to increase the absorption of topical minoxidil.
