Objective Outcome Measures: Collecting Meaningful Data on Alopecia Areata

Publication date: Available online 8 November 2017
Source:Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology
Author(s): Elise A. Olsen, Janet Roberts, Leonard Sperling, Antonella Tosti, Jerry Shapiro, Amy McMichael, Wilma Bergfeld, Valerie Callender, Paradi Mirmirani, Ken Washenik, David Whiting, George Cotsarelis, Maria Hordinsky
BackgroundAlthough alopecia areata is a common disorder, it has no FDA approved treatment and evidence-based therapeutic data is lacking.ObjectiveTo develop guidelines for the diagnosis, evaluation, assessment, response criteria and endpoints for alopecia areata.MethodsLiterature review and expert opinion of a group of dermatologists specializing in hair disorders.ResultsStandardized methods of assessing and tracking hair loss and growth including new scoring techniques, response criteria and endpoints in alopecia areata are presented.LimitationsThe additional time to perform the assessments is the primary limitation to use of the methodology in clinical practice.ConclusionUse of these measures will facilitate collection of standardized outcome data on therapeutic agents used in alopecia areata both in clinical practice and in clinical trials.