Treatment of Alopecia Areata With the Janus Kinase Inhibitor Upadacitinib: A Retrospective Cohort Study

The retrospective cohort study conducted on 25 patients with alopecia areata (AA) treated with upadacitinib, a janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor, showed significant improvement in hair regrowth and quality of life. The median Severity of Alopecia Tool scores reduced from 50 to 5 after 24 weeks of therapy, and the Dermatology Quality of Life Index scores declined from 15 to 2 at week 24. Eyelash and eyebrow hair regrowth of >50% was also noted. No significant side effects were reported, with only 2 (8%) participants experiencing nausea and 1 (4%) experiencing a headache, which resolved after the first 4 weeks of treatment. The study's limitations include the small size of the cohort, lack of a placebo-controlled arm, short duration of the study, and the relatively young age of the cohort. Further evaluation in larger cohorts is necessary to compare the safety and efficacy of upadacitinib to other JAK inhibitors.