The Spotted Lunula: Three Patients with Alopecia Areata Exhibited Spotty Absence of Whiteness in the Lunulae of Their Nails

May 1980 in “ Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology ”

Walter B. Shelley

alopecia areata lunulae matrical epithelium nail plate Wickham's striae

TLDR Alopecia areata can cause spotty white areas on nails.

The document described three patients with alopecia areata who exhibited a spotty absence of the whiteness of the lunulae in their nails. This phenomenon was attributed to defects in the tongue of matrical epithelium beneath the nail plate, which is responsible for the lunula. The study drew an analogy with Wickham's striae, suggesting a similar underlying mechanism.

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