Comparative efficacy of topical calcipotriol and tacrolimus in alopecia areata: A prospective trial.

Introduction Alopecia areata (AA) is a non-scarring, inflammatory type of hair loss, ranging in severity from patchy hair loss to alopecia totalis and universalis. Various treatment modalities are available for alopecia areata, including topical, intralesional, and systemic steroids, minoxidil, and systemic immunosuppressive. Multiple studies demonstrated the variable efficacy of vitamin D analogs in alopecia areata, but none have compared them with topical tacrolimus. Methods It was a randomized control trial conducted at Tehsil Headquarters Hospital TakhtBhai, Mardan. A total of 80 patients were enrolled in the study, 40 in each group. Using the technique of a consecutive non-probability sampling, patients were separated into groups A and B. Group A received topical calcipotriol (0.005%), while group B patients were treated with tacrolimus (0.1%). Both drugs were used twice a day for 6 months. Lesions are examined every month, and at the end of 6 months, a final SALT score is calculated. Results In our study, group A had 52% males and 48% females, while group B had 49% males and 51% females. The mean age was 32.6±6.7 and 31.5±7.4 in Group A and B respectively. The mean baseline SALT score in group A was 14.3±5.2 while in group B was13±5.1. On the other hand, the mean SALT score after 6 months was 6.2±2.3 in Group A and 8.5±5.6 in Group B. The efficacy in Group A came out to be 67%, while in group B 33% efficacy was noted (p-value=0.0132). Conclusion This study found that topical calcipotriol is superior to topical tacrolimus for hair growth in patients with alopecia areata. The difference was statistically significant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]