Hair Loss After Drug Reaction With Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms: A Multicentric Retrospective Study
April 2023
in “
Journal of Investigative Dermatology
”
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Studysummary This study reviewed data from three hospitals and found that alopecia after DRESS occurred more often in severe cases, but the rate of corticosteroid treatment did not significantly differ between patients with and without alopecia.
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The retrospective study reviewed 182 patients diagnosed with Drug Reaction with Eosinophilia and Systemic Symptoms (DRESS) from 2009 to 2021, and found 10 patients (4 males, 6 females, mean age 40.6 years) who developed alopecia after DRESS. The most common drug causing DRESS was carbamazepine (40% of cases). The types of alopecia diagnosed were permanent alopecia (4 patients), telogen effluvium (5 patients), and alopecia areata (1 patient). Patients with alopecia had more severe DRESS, as indicated by a higher RegiSCAR score (6.3 vs 5.2, p = .022). However, there was no significant difference in the rates of corticosteroid and high dose corticosteroid administration between patients with and without alopecia. The study concludes that alopecia can be a long-term consequence of DRESS, and early intervention is needed for patients with severe DRESS who are at risk of developing alopecia.
