Tinea Capitis Presenting as Diffuse Hair Loss and Significance of Trichoscopy: Four Case Reports.

Tinea capitis is a common fungal infection in children but is less frequently encountered in adults. Tinea capitis presenting as diffuse hair loss is a rare presentation. When patient presents with a diffuse hair loss, tinea capitis is not commonly thought of as differential diagnosis. Low clinical suspicion can lead to inappropriate empiric treatments that delay diagnosis. Trichoscopy in tinea capitis obviates the need for lengthy and invasive procedure or even KOH examinations in the absence of a side lab for diagnosing this common scalp disorder and also avoids misdiagnosis. Trichoscopy not only differentiates tinea capitis from female patterned hair loss but also aids in differentiating ectothrix from endothrix. Here, we present case reports of tinea capitis masquerading as female pattern hair loss with trichoscopy aiding in diagnosis of endothrix infection.

Characterization of follicular minoxidil sulfotransferase activity in a cohort of pattern hair loss patients from the Indian Subcontinent.

Several studies have established that sulfotransferase enzyme activity in the outer root sheath of plucked hair follicles predicts response to topical minoxidil in the treatment of pattern hair loss. However, the prevalence of this enzyme activity among Indian patients has not been studied. Additionally, no reports in the literature characterize sulfotransferase activity based on sex, age, duration of hair loss, grade of hair loss, and family history. In this study we utilized a sulfotransferase activity assay first reported by Goren et al. We characterize the follicular sulfotransferase activity of 120 pattern hair loss patients visiting a dermatology outpatient clinic in India. Overall, 40.8% of patients with pattern hair loss had low levels of sulfotransferase. Surprisingly, 49.3% of men had low levels of sulfotransferase compared to 26.6% of women. No correlation was found between sulfotransferase activity and age, duration of hair loss, grade of hair loss, or family history. A sub-analysis of patient reported outcomes (PRO) validated previous findings that sulfotransferase enzyme activity is a predictive marker for minoxidil response in pattern hair loss patients.