Retrospective Analysis of Pediatric Alopecia Areata Treated with Methotrexate
July 2021
in “
Dermatology archives
”
TLDR Methotrexate may effectively and safely treat hair loss in children, with notable improvement after 12-15 months.
The study retrospectively analyzed 27 pediatric patients with alopecia areata (AA) treated with methotrexate at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia from 2015 to 2018. It found a statistically significant decrease in Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) scores at 12-15 months of treatment, indicating an improvement in the severity of the disease, although no significant improvement was observed at 6-9 months. The most common side effects reported were mood changes and gastrointestinal discomfort. The results suggest that methotrexate may be an effective and safe treatment option for AA in pediatric patients, with delayed but significant outcomes.