Compound Hair Follicles are hair follicles with more than the normal number of hairs emerging from a single hair follicle opening. In this photo, we see some of the earliest signs of a condition known as folliculitis decalvans. The scalp is red and scaly and there is a clear tendency for hair follicles to fuse together. [...]

Five Fold increased Risk of Fibroids in Women with CCCA  A new study, published in JAMA Dermatology, has given evidence that women with central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA) are at increased risk of developing benign uterine tumors known as fibroids.  The medical terms for these are uterine leiomyomas. CCCA is a type of scarring alopecia that [...]

Pseudopelade of Brocq (PPB) is a scarring alopecia that affects both women and men. The central scalp is often affected first. This condition causes permanent hair loss - hair does not regrow. The goal of treatment is to stop further loss. The cause is unknown. The areas of hair loss are usually pale colored in those [...]

Dissecting Cellulitis (DSC) is an uncommon scarring alopecia. It most commonly affects men 20-40. Several disease associations have been reported including hidradenitiis suppurative, acne conglobata, pilonidal cysts, and arthritis. Other associations have been reported but appear less common. Syed and colleagues report a 31 year old man with dissecting cellulitis and Crohns disease. The patient responded [...]

Discoid lupus (DLE) of the scalp is one of the scarring alopecias. It’s important to recognize early because regrowth can sometimes occur with aggressive treatment. DLE can sometimes mimic another scarring alopecia known as lichen planopilaris and sometimes even looks like alopecia areata. The use of a dermatoscope can help correctly identify DLE. In 2009 Antonella [...]

Several studies to date have suggested an association between the frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) and the common dermatologic condition known as acne rosacea (or simply “rosacea”). How exactly the two are linked is not entirely clear. Typical trichoscopic image of a patient with the scarring alopecia known as frontal fibrosing alopecia or “FFA.” There are most [...]

Losing Hair on Plaquenil: The 5 Possibilities Hydroxychloroquine (also known by its popular brand name Plaquenil) is an oral medication that is commonly used to treat a variety of autoimmune diseases including systemic lupus, dermatomyositis, rheumatoid arthritis, Sjogren’s and many other conditions as well. In the field of hair loss, conditions such as lichen planopilaris, frontal [...]

A Closer Look at the Typical Course of Treating Lichen Planopilaris Lichen planopilaris is a scarring alopecia. Treatments are largely focused on reducing inflammation in hopes that by doing so the disease can be stopped. In the present day, there are many aspects of LPP that are difficult to predict. We know to some degree which [...]

Alopecia is a common disorder in India. The causes of alopecia are diverse, and a specific diagnosis is made by a concert of detailed clinical history, accurate description of lesions, histopathologic evaluation of scalp biopsies taken from appropriate sites, and sometimes, special techniques such as direct immunofluorescence (DIF).[1],[2],[3],[4] Of these, the contribution of histopathology is paramount. The [...]

Central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia (CCCA) is the term adopted by the North American Hair Research Society (NAHRS) to encompass the previous terms of "hot comb alopecia," "follicular degeneration syndrome," "pseudopelade" in African Americans and "central elliptical pseudopelade" in Caucasians. [1] CCCA is a subcategory of primary, inflammatory cicatricial alopecia, and is the most common form of scarring alopecia [...]