Pathologic Dynamics of Human Hair Loss

In the correspondence regarding the "Pathologic Dynamics of Human Hair Loss," Dr. Frederick D. Malkinson clarifies that his and Lynfield's research demonstrated colchicine induces anagen hair loss, not telogen effluvium, as misquoted by A. Kligman. Their studies on rats, mice, and a human patient showed that colchicine leads to anagen effluvium, with over 95% of shed hairs being normal club hairs, not broken anagen hairs. They proposed that colchicine might induce catagen, leading to rapid hair loss due to follicular damage. Malkinson emphasized that low, prolonged doses of colchicine affect the hair cycle, while large doses cause anagen alopecia, a prediction later confirmed by other researchers.