Guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of male-pattern and female-pattern hair loss, 2017 version.

Male-pattern hair loss (MPHL, androgenetic alopecia) is a slowly progressive form of alopecia which begins after puberty. In 2010, we published the first Japanese edition of guidelines for the diagnosis and treatment of MPHL. It achieved the original goal of providing physicians and patients in Japan with evidence-based information for choosing efficacious and safe therapy for MPHL. Subsequently, new therapeutic drugs and treatment methods have been developed, and women's perception of MPHL has undergone change and the term "female-pattern hair loss (FPHL)" is becoming more common internationally. Thus, here we report a revised version of the 2010 guidelines aimed at both MPHL and FPHL. In these guidelines, finasteride 1 mg daily, dutasteride 0.5 mg daily and topical 5% minoxidil twice daily for MPHL, and topical 1% minoxidil twice daily for FPHL, are recommended as the first-line treatments. Self-hair transplantation, irradiation by light-emitting diodes and low-level lasers, and topical application of adenosine for MPHL are recommended, whereas prosthetic hair transplantation and oral administration of minoxidil should not be performed. Oral administration of finasteride or dutasteride are contraindicated for FPHL. In addition, we have evaluated the effectiveness of topical application of carpronium chloride, t-flavanone, cytopurine, pentadecane and ketoconazole, and wearing a wig. Unapproved topical application of bimatoprost and latanoprost, and emerging hair regeneration treatments have also been addressed. We believe that the revised guidelines will improve further the diagnostic and treatment standards for MPHL add FPHL in Japan.

Green light emitting diodes accelerate wound healing: characterization of the effect and its molecular basis in vitro and in vivo.

Because light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are low-coherent, quasimonochromatic, and nonthermal, they are an alternative for low level laser therapy, and have photobiostimulative effects on tissue repair. However, the molecular mechanism(s) are unclear, and potential effects of blue and/or green LEDs on wound healing are still unknown. Here, we investigated the effects of red (638 nm), blue (456 nm), and green (518 nm) LEDs on wound healing. In an in vivo study, wound sizes in the skin of ob/ob mice were significantly decreased on day 7 following exposure to green LEDs, and complete reepithelialization was accelerated by red and green LEDs compared with the control mice. To better understand the molecular mechanism(s) involved, we investigated the effects of LEDs on human fibroblasts in vitro by measuring mRNA and protein levels of cytokines secreted by fibroblasts during the process of wound healing and on the migration of HaCat keratinocytes. The results suggest that some cytokines are significantly increased by exposure to LEDs, especially leptin, IL-8, and VEGF, but only by green LEDs. The migration of HaCat keratinocytes was significantly promoted by red or green LEDs. In conclusion, we demonstrate that green LEDs promote wound healing by inducing migratory and proliferative mediators, which suggests that not only red LEDs but also green LEDs can be a new powerful therapeutic strategy for wound healing.

Allergic contact dermatitis induced by rosemary leaf extract in a cleansing gel.

We report a rare case of allergic contact dermatitis due to an extract of rosemary (Rosmarinus officinalis). A 23-year-old woman had begun to notice itchy erythema on her face around one month before presentation. She used various cosmetics and a cleansing gel containing rosemary leaf extract. From the patch test results, she reacted positively to the cleansing gel (1% in distilled water) and the rosemary leaf extract (0.1% in distilled water), one of its ingredients.