Treatment of Alopecia Areata With Tofacitinib
June 2017
in “JAMA Dermatology”
TLDR Tofacitinib helped regrow hair in people with severe alopecia, but side effects occurred and benefits stopped after treatment ended.
In a retrospective study at the Cleveland Clinic involving 13 patients with severe alopecia areata (AA), treatment with oral tofacitinib resulted in a mean hair regrowth rate of 44.3%, with over half of the patients experiencing at least 50% regrowth. The average time to see hair regrowth was 4.2 months. However, some adverse events were reported, including a skin eruption and peripheral edema in one patient, and reversible lipid and liver abnormalities in two patients. The study indicated that while tofacitinib is effective for AA, the benefits ceased after stopping the treatment. The findings are limited by the lack of a control group and the small number of participants.
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Cited in this study
research Oral ruxolitinib induces hair regrowth in patients with moderate-to-severe alopecia areata
Ruxolitinib effectively regrows hair in most patients with severe hair loss.
research Safety and efficacy of the JAK inhibitor tofacitinib citrate in patients with alopecia areata
Tofacitinib is safe and effective for severe alopecia areata, but hair loss may return 2 months after stopping treatment.
research Treatment of an alopecia areata patient with tofacitinib results in regrowth of hair and changes in serum and skin biomarkers
A patient with alopecia areata regrew hair after taking tofacitinib and showed changes in certain blood and skin markers.
research Alopecia areata is driven by cytotoxic T lymphocytes and is reversed by JAK inhibition
Alopecia areata can be reversed by JAK inhibitors, promoting hair regrowth.
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