Serum ferritin and vitamin d in female hair loss: do they play a role?

AIM: Evaluation of serum ferritin and vitamin D levels in females with chronic telogen effluvium (TE) or female pattern hair loss (FPHL), in order to validate their role in these common hair loss diseases. METHODS: Eighty females (18 to 45 years old) with hair loss, in the form of TE or FPHL, and 40 age-matched females with no hair loss were included in the study. Diagnosis was based upon clinical examination as well as trichogram and dermoscopy. Serum ferritin and vitamin D2 levels were determined for each participant. RESULTS: Serum ferritin levels in the TE (14.7 ± 22.1 µg/l) and FPHL (23.9 ± 38.5 µg/l) candidates were significantly lower than in controls (43.5 ± 20.4 µg/l). Serum vitamin D2 levels in females with TE (28.8 ± 10.5 nmol/l) and FPHL (29.1 ± 8.5 nmol/l) were significantly lower than in controls (118.2 ± 68.1 nmol/l; p < 0.001). These levels decreased with increased disease severity. Serum ferritin cut-off values for TE and FPHL were 27.5 and 29.4 µg/l, respectively, and those for vitamin D were 40.9 and 67.9 nmol/l. CONCLUSION: Low serum ferritin and vitamin D2 are associated with hair loss in females with TE and FPHL. Screening to establish these levels in cases of hair loss and supplementing with them when they are deficient may be beneficial in the treatment of disease.

Estimation of (IgA) anti-gliadin, anti-endomysium and tissue transglutaminase in the serum of patients with psoriasis.

Studies have indicated an association between psoriasis and coeliac disease (CD), an immune-mediated gluten-dependent enteropathy; however, the precise relationship between psoriasis and CD remains controversial. We aimed to assess the prevalence of the CD-associated IgA antibodies antigliadin antibody (AGA), tissue transglutaminase (tTG) and antiendomysium antibody (EMA) in patients with psoriasis. In total, 41 patients with psoriasis and 41 healthy controls were enrolled in this study. Blood samples were taken from all participants, and screened for AGA, tTG and EMA. We found a significantly higher level of AGA in patients with psoriasis than in controls, but levels of tTG and EMA were not significant. There was also a significantly higher prevalence of AGA, tTG and EMA in the patient group (34.1%, 34.1% and 14.6%, respectively) than in the control group (2.4%, 22% and 4.9%, respectively). We conclude that the significantly high prevalence of AGA antibodies in patients with psoriasis supports the possibility of a link between psoriasis and gluten-sensitive enteropathies, especially CD.

A large scale analytical study on efficacy of different photo(chemo)therapeutic modalities in the treatment of psoriasis, vitiligo and mycosis fungoides.

Psoriasis, vitiligo, and mycosis fungoides (MF) are among the most frequently treated dermatological diseases by photo(chemo)therapy. The objectives are to determine which photo (chemo) therapeutic modality could achieve the best response in the treatment of psoriasis, vitiligo, and MF. The design used in this study is retrospective analytical study. The study included 745 patients' records; 293 with psoriasis, 309 with vitiligo, and 143 with early MF, treated in the Phototherapy Unit, Dermatology Department, Kasr El-Aini Hospital, Cairo University by either psoralen and ultraviolet A (PUVA), narrow band ultraviolet B (NB-UVB), psoralen and narrow band UVB (P-NBUVB), broad band UVB (BB-UVB), or broad band UVA (BetaBeta-UVA). Data were retrieved from the computer database of the unit and statistically analyzed. In psoriasis, oral and topical PUVA and NB-UVB were found to be equally effective, whereas oral PUVA had significantly better results than both UVA and BB-UVB at the end of therapy. In generalized vitiligo, PUVA and P-NBUVB had significantly better results than NB-UVB alone. In early MF, there was no statistically significant difference between the response to oral PUVA and NB-UVB. PUVA and NB-UVB are good choices in patients with psoriasis and early stage MF, whereas PUVA appears the best choice in the treatment of vitiligo.

Expression of cyclin D1 and p16 in psoriasis before and after phototherapy.

BACKGROUND: Psoriasis vulgaris (PV) is characterized by keratinocyte hyperproliferation. Altered expression of cell-cycle regulatory genes involved in the cyclin D1 / p16 INK4-pRb pathway may contribute to this epidermal hyperproliferation. AIM: To assess the expression of cyclin D1 and p16 in psoriasis, and to evaluate the effect of phototherapy on their expression. METHODS: The study population comprised 25 patients with PV and 10 healthy controls. Patients were treated with 24 sessions of either narrowband ultraviolet (UV) B or psoralen UVA. Skin biopsies were taken from the affected skin of each patient before and after treatment, and from the healthy controls, to examine cyclin D1 and p16 expression. RESULTS: Before phototherapy, the mean value of cyclin D1 concentration in patients was significantly greater than that in controls and the mean value of p16 concentration in patients was significantly lower than that in controls. Following treatment, we detected a significant decrease in cyclin D1 and a significant increase in p16. CONCLUSION: Cyclin D1 upregulation and p16 downregulation may play a role in the pathogenesis of psoriasis. Normalization of the levels of both parameters may be a mechanism by which phototherapy induces remission in psoriasis.