Alopecia Areata Treatments

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that causes the immune system to mistakenly attack the hair follicles. White blood cells see the hair follicles as a foreign body and start to attack them. This causes the hair to fall out from the follicle and cease regeneration. According to the American Osteopathic College of Dermatology, this form of alopecia affects 1 percent of the U.S. population.

Corticosteroid Injections

• Intralesional steroid injections such as Kenalog are given to generate new growth in the hair follicles. The injection is administered through a small needle directly into the lesions (patches of missing hair). The recommended dose is 3 ml, and the injections are given about 1 cm apart. These corticosteroid injections have to be given repeatedly over a period of four to six weeks, although hair growth is usually apparent within a month.

Shampoos (Clobetasol)

• Clobetasol is a corticosteroid medication in shampoo form. It is generally recommended for the treatment of psoriasis of the scalp, but, it's also used to treat alopecia areata. It is a very strong medication and should not be combined with any other shampoo or conditioner or used on any other part of the body. It is used by applying a thin layer over the dry scalp. The shampoo should be squeezed directly over the scalp. Rub the shampoo into the lesions and leave it undisturbed for 15 minutes. You must wash your hands after use immediately. Lather and rinse, making sure you rinse every part of your body that has come in contact with the shampoo. Treatment should last no longer than four weeks.

Minoxidil

• Minoxidil 5 percent is sold as a topical solution under the store name Rogaine. This solution has been found particularly helpful for people with alopecia areata. Although Minoxidil is used for the treatment of alopecia areata, it is not FDA approved to be used in this purpose. Minoxidil 2 percent is FDA approved for androgenic alopecia (male pattern hair loss). Minoxidil 5 percent is mainly prescribed to men.

Anthralin

• Anthralin is a non-specific irritant used to induce hair growth. Non-specific irritants work by stimulating the hair follicles to start producing new hair. Anecdotal success has been reported with Anthralin 0.5 percent, so it's generally prescribed as a second course of treatment. Anthralin (topical treatment) can be prescribed as a cream or liquid and is applied directly to the scalp.

  According to alopeciaareatainfo.com, a test was conducted in which 32 patients with alopecia areata used Anthralin. Eighteen of these patients showed acceptable re-growth after use of. In these patients, treatment was continued until hair growth was cosmetically acceptable, which occurred about six months into use.

Considerations

• Before the use of any of the above treatments, you may have to get undergo a few tests to insure the proper treatment is given. As alopecia areata can stem from a number of different ailments, it is important to make sure that the ailment itself can be treated before the use of any hair growth products. For instance if you have a ringworm infection on the scalp (tinea capitis), the infection will continue to cause alopeica areata until it is properly treated.