The Hair Loss Encyclopedia

T Cell–Mediated Acute Localized Exanthematous Pustulosis Caused by Finasteride

February 2012 in “ The Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology ”

Sandra Tresch, Antonio Cozzio, Jivko Kamarashev, Thomas Harr, Peter Schmid-Grendelmeier, Lars E. French, Laurence Feldmeyer

finasteride acute localized exanthematous pustulosis ALEP drug hypersensitivity reactions lymphocyte transformation test acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis AGEP Propecia

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TLDR Finasteride caused a rare skin rash in a man, which improved after stopping the medication.

A 21-year-old man developed a pruritic rash on his upper trunk and neck after taking finasteride for hair loss. A lesional biopsy showed acute localized exanthematous pustulosis (ALEP), a rare skin condition primarily caused by drug reactions. The rash resolved after discontinuing the medication, and a lymphocyte transformation test confirmed the reaction to finasteride. The article discusses the differential diagnosis of ALEP and the pathophysiology of drug hypersensitivity reactions. The authors suggest that ALEP may be an independent entity from acute generalized exanthematous pustulosis (AGEP), but more research is needed.

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Research cited in this study

5 / 5 results

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4 citations, February 1996 in “Postgraduate Medical Journal”

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7 citations, April 2007 in “PubMed”

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