Evaluation of Anthralin in the Treatment of Alopecia Areata

Anthralin cream at concentrations of 0.5% to 1.0% was used to treat 68 patients with severe alopecia areata. While all patients experienced pruritus, local erythema, and scaling, the treatment was relatively well tolerated. A cosmetic response was observed in 17 patients (25%), with 12 of these 17 maintaining the response during therapy. For those treated with 0.5% anthralin, the mean time to initial response was 11 weeks, and the mean time to cosmetic response was 23 weeks. The duration of the current episode of hair loss did not correlate with the cosmetic response. Compared to other topical treatments available at the time, anthralin was considered a reasonable therapeutic option for severe alopecia areata.