Preface

In 1996, David A. Whiting, MD, highlighted the significant progress made in hair disorder research since the discovery of minoxidil's hair growth-promoting effects, which had previously spurred interest in studying the hair cycle. The update covered a balance between basic science and clinical aspects of hair problems, including the controls of hair follicle growth, the role of growth factors, interactions between skin layers and hair follicles, and the innovative techniques of whole hair follicle culture and growing human hair in nude mice. It also addressed the study of hair keratinization, the nerve supply to hair follicles in relation to alopecia, and the etiology and pathogenesis of alopecia areata, which affects about 1% of the U.S. population. Diagnostic approaches to alopecia, the treatment of androgenetic alopecia with 5-alpha-reductase inhibitors, standardized photographic methods for assessing hair regrowth, chronic telogen effluvium, topical immunotherapy for severe alopecia areata, and updates on hair shaft disorders and cicatricial alopecia were also included. The preface concluded with an optimistic outlook for continued advancements in the research, diagnosis, and treatment of hair disorders in the following decade.