Cetirizina topica para alopecia androgenetica!
Topical Cetirizine in the Treatment of Androgenetic Alopecia
The authors evaluated the efficacy of topical cetirizine for treatment of androgenetic alopecia in 85 male and female study participants. Overall, 67 participants applied cetirizine 1% daily on the scalp, and 18 applied vehicle as controls. The treatment group showed increased total density, increased terminal density, and decreased vellus density after 6 months of use. Prostaglandin D2 has been implicated in baldness, and the mechanism of action is thought to relate to the anti-PGD2 effect of cetirizine.
The authors of this study suggest that topical cetirizine could be an emerging treatment for androgenetic alopecia.
– Anna A. Wile, MD
- Written by
The search for novel therapies for hair loss is thankfully ongoing, as the majority of the world's inhabitants eventually suffer from it. Likewise, given the concerns, valid or not, regarding existing pharmacologic choices, seeking treatments without significant side effects is worthwhile. Rossi et al present results of a small pilot study attempting to do just that.
Their logic is as follows. Existing medications, particularly targeting 5-alpha reductase, have undesirable side effects. Prostaglandins (PG) have been implicated in the hair loss pathway, and thus drugs altering PG pathways (eg, latanoprost) may result in hair growth. Cetirizine, principally known as an H1 receptor antagonist, was shown in 1989 to reduce PGD2 production. Thus, perhaps topical cetirizine could enhance hair growth. Notably, other studies of cetirizine have failed to show an effect on PGD2 production, and hypertrichosis is not a common association with systemic cetirizine use.
The authors conducted a 6-month trial of topical cetirizine, measuring terminal and vellus hair counts and hair diameter, as well as global photography. They indeed found a modest increase in total and terminal hair density and diameter, and a decrease in vellus hair density. Disappointingly, their global photography was very poorly controlled, with the before images better than the afters, and with a different head position in one set, making it very difficult to draw meaningful conclusions. If these were the best of the 67 sets of images at their disposal, my enthusiasm about their conclusions is muted. I commend the authors for a novel idea, as cetirizine is certainly inexpensive and very safe, but I would like to see additional studies of this drug with more convincing endpoints.
Abstract
BACKGROUND
Androgenetic alopecia (AGA) is a common form of scalp hair loss that affects up to 50% of males between 18 and 40 years old. Several molecules are commonly used for the treatment of AGA, acting on different steps of its pathogenesis (Minoxidil, Finasteride, Serenoa repens) and show some side effects. In literature, on the basis of hypertrichosis observed in patients treated with analogues of prostaglandin PGF2a, it was supposed that prostaglandins would have an important role in the hair growth: PGE and PGF2a play a positive role, while PGD2 a negative one.
OBJECTIVE
We carried out a pilot study to evaluate the efficacy of topical cetirizine versus placebo in patients with AGA.
PATIENTS AND METHODS
A sample of 85 patients was recruited, of which 67 were used to assess the effectiveness of the treatment with topical cetirizine, while 18 were control patients.
RESULTS
We found that the main effect of cetirizine was an increase in total hair density, terminal hair density and diameter variation from T0 to T1, while the vellus hair density shows an evident decrease. The use of a molecule as cetirizine, with no notable side effects, makes possible a good compliance by patients.
CONCLUSION
Our results have shown that topical cetirizine 1% is responsible for a significant improvement of the initial framework of AGA.
Additional Info
A Preliminary Study on Topical Cetirizine in the Therapeutic Management of Androgenetic Alopecia
J Dermatolog Treat 2018 Mar 01;29(2)149-151, A Rossi, D Campo, MC Fortuna, V Garelli, G Pranteda, G De Vita, L Sorriso-Valvo, D Di Nunno, M Carlesimoposted by dermatica at
April 03, 2018
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