Lamivudine Associated Hair Repigmentation and a Comprehensive Review on Reversal of Canities
June 2021
Studysummary This review reports the first known case of hair repigmentation associated with lamivudine use and examines mechanisms related to drug-induced hair repigmentation, suggesting potential therapeutic strategies for reversing hair graying. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.
This document presents a review of the mechanisms of hair pigmentation and drug-related hair repigmentation, with a focus on the potential of lamivudine, an antiretroviral medication, to induce hair repigmentation. The review involved searching PubMed, Medline, and Google Scholar databases for related articles. The authors report what appears to be the first case of hair repigmentation associated with lamivudine use, as no previous reports of hair color changes with this drug were identified in their research. The conclusion suggests that lamivudine may have a desirable side effect of inducing hair pigmentation, and further research into the mechanisms of drug-induced hair repigmentation could lead to therapeutic strategies for addressing hair graying, a significant cosmetic concern.
