Non-Scarring Alopecia in Systemic Lupus Erythematosus Patients at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital: A Cross-Sectional Study of Prevalence, Pattern, Trichoscopy Features and Histopathological Analysis
January 2024
in “
Pan African Medical Journal
”
TLDR Non-scarring hair loss is common in lupus patients and can be diagnosed with specific hair and tissue tests.
The study at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital examined non-scarring alopecia in 75 systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) patients, finding a 48% prevalence of non-scarring alopecia, with patchy hair loss being the most common pattern. Trichoscopy revealed hair shaft thinning, hypopigmentation, and scalp pigmentary changes, while histopathology showed reduced sebaceous glands and inflammatory changes even in normal-appearing scalp areas. The study concluded that non-scarring alopecia is prevalent in SLE patients and that trichoscopic and histopathologic differences exist between those with and without hair loss, indicating scalp involvement in the inflammatory process of SLE.