Efficacy and Safety of Methotrexate in Alopecia Areata

August 2014 in “ Anais brasileiros de dermatologia/Anais Brasileiros de Dermatologia ”

Mariana Hammerschmidt, Fabiane Mulinari Brenner

methotrexate alopecia areata systemic corticosteroids hair regrowth multifocal alopecia areata MTX AA

TLDR Methotrexate is a promising and safe treatment for severe alopecia areata, with better results when combined with corticosteroids.

The study from 2014 evaluated methotrexate (MTX) in 31 patients with alopecia areata (AA) and found that 67.7% experienced over 50% hair regrowth, especially those with less than 5 years of disease progression, age over 40, male patients, and those with multifocal AA. Combination therapy with systemic corticosteroids showed higher regrowth rates (77.3%) compared to MTX alone (44.4%). The therapeutic dose ranged from 10-25 mg/week, with no serious adverse effects reported. Relapse occurred in 33.3% of patients with significant regrowth. The study concluded that MTX is a promising and safe treatment for severe AA, either alone or combined with corticosteroids, but larger trials are needed to confirm its efficacy as a first-line therapy.

View this study on scielo.br →

Discuss this study in the Community →

Research cited in this study

4 / 4 results

research Interest of High-Dose Pulse Corticosteroid Therapy Combined with Methotrexate for Severe Alopecia Areata: A Retrospective Case Series

39 citations, January 2012 in “Dermatology”

Combining high-dose corticosteroids with methotrexate may be effective and safe for severe alopecia areata.

research Efficacy and Tolerability of Methotrexate in Severe Childhood Alopecia Areata

70 citations, April 2011 in “British journal of dermatology/British journal of dermatology, Supplement”

Methotrexate sometimes helps regrow hair in children with severe alopecia areata and is generally safe.

research Alopecia Areata Update

244 citations, January 2010 in “Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology”

The document says current treatments for alopecia areata do not cure or prevent it, and it's hard to judge their effectiveness due to spontaneous remission and lack of studies.