Dermoscopic Evaluation of Therapeutic Response to Intralesional Triamcinolone Acetonide in the Treatment of Alopecia Areata

The study evaluated the efficacy of intralesional triamcinolone acetonide in treating alopecia areata in 70 patients aged 11-56 years. Dermoscopic findings, including black dots, yellow dots, broken hair, tapering hair, and vellus hair, were used to assess disease activity and treatment response. Over 24 weeks, the treatment significantly reduced the presence of black dots (100% to 4.3%), yellow dots (98.6% to 0%), broken hair (17% to 0%), and tapering hair (74.3% to 0%), while increasing vellus hair from 71.4% to 100%. The overall success rate, defined as achieving a re-growth score of 4, was 60%. The study concluded that these dermoscopic characteristics are primary indicators of alopecia areata and can be used to monitor treatment efficacy.