Dermoscopic Features Of Alopecia Areata And Their Clinical Significance

Objective:To observe the features of alopecia areata(AA)with dermoscopy and study its significance for clinical diagnosis.Methods:A handheld dermoscope was used to observe the balding scalp of 85 patients with,a AA,40 patients with androgenetic alopecia(AGA),as well as normal scalp of 45 human controls without hair loss.climical information was also collected from these subjects.Then the data were analyzed.Results:The most common dermoscopic features was yellow dots,followed by broken hairs,short vellus hairs,black dots,exclamation mark hairs,telangiectasia,coiled hair/spiral hair,hair tapering.The incidence rate of yellow dots,black dots,broken hairs,hair ring/spiral hairs,short vellus hairs,exclamation mark hairs,telangiectasia,coiled hair/spiral hair,hair tapering were significantly higher,in AA patients than controls.The incidence rate of hair diameter diversity > 20%,brown peripilar sign,scalp pigmentation and telangiectasia was lower in patients with AA than in patients with androgenetic alopecia.The incidence rate of hair diameter diversity > 20%,hairy pigments drop,brown peripilar sign,and honeycomb pigmentation were significantly higher in the patients with AGA than in the healthy controls.While yellow dots,black dots,white dots and hair tapering was positively correlated with the area of hair loss.Conclusion:The yellow dots,broken hair,black dots,short vellus hair are more sensitive for AA,exclamation mark hairs is highly sensitive for the confirmation of diagnosis of AA.The incidence rate of hair diameter diversity > 20%,hairy pigments drop,brown peripilar sign,and honeycomb pigmentation are more sensitive for AGA.The differences between the dermoscopic features and the different types of AA were small.