Nail Involvement in Pediatric Alopecia Areata: Clinical and Onychoscopic Features: A Series of 42 Cases
March 2026
in “
Scholars Journal of Medical Case Reports
”
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Studysummary In this study, nail involvement was observed in 42.8% of children with alopecia areata, yet often went unrecognized, indicating that clinical and dermoscopic evaluations can improve detection and provide important prognostic information. Our plain-language summary of this paper — not a Tressless recommendation.
This study of 42 children with alopecia areata found that nail involvement is common, occurring in 42.8% of cases, and often goes unrecognized. The study highlights the importance of dermoscopic evaluation, which can detect subtle nail changes and provide prognostic information. Nail abnormalities were more prevalent in females and included conditions such as onychorrhexis, pitting, and leukonychia. The findings suggest that systematic clinical and dermoscopic evaluations should be conducted in pediatric patients with alopecia areata to improve diagnosis and management.
