Upadacitinib for Alopecia: Current Evidence and Clinical Insights
February 2025
in “
Skin Appendage Disorders
”
TLDR Upadacitinib helps most people with alopecia regrow hair quickly and is generally safe.
This scoping review evaluates the efficacy of upadacitinib, a JAK 1 inhibitor, in treating alopecia areata (AA) by analyzing data from 24 publications involving 64 patients. The study found that most patients experienced significant or complete hair regrowth within 1-4 months, with the drug being well tolerated and causing only mild adverse effects. Upadacitinib also showed benefits for patients with comorbid autoimmune conditions. However, the study's limitations include small cohort sizes and reliance on case reports. Ongoing studies, including a U.S. Phase 3 clinical trial and a real-world observational study in China, aim to further assess the drug's long-term efficacy and safety, highlighting the need for larger, controlled trials.
