Comparative study of efficacy of topical mometasone with calcipotriol versus mometasone alone in the treatment of alopecia areata

Abstract

Background: Alopecia areata is one of the common causes of nonscarring hair loss with autoimmune etiology. This study was designed to evaluate any added benefit of topical calcipotriol when combined with topical mometasone in the treatment of alopecia areata. To the best of our knowledge, no such study has been conducted in the past. Materials and Methods: It was a comparative analytical study done over 100 patients of clinically diagnosed alopecia areata. Group A patients ( n = 50) were advised to apply topical mometasone 0.1% cream along with topical calcipotriol 0.005% ointment each once daily, whereas patients of Group B ( n = 50) were advised to apply only topical mometasone 0.1% cream in the same amount, once a day. Follow-up of all patients was done at 6, 12, and 24 weeks, and the outcome was assessed according to the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) score at every visit. Results: Both the groups were statistically comparable in terms of age ( P = 0.694) and sex ( P = 0.683) distribution. Baseline mean SALT score of Group A and Group B patients was 7.22 and 6.05, respectively ( P = 0.145). At the end of 24 weeks, mean SALT score of Group A and Group B patients decreased by 4.24 and 3.39, respectively ( P < 0.001). We also found that there was a significant decrease ( P < 0.001) in mean SALT score at 24 weeks in patients of both groups when compared with baseline values. Conclusion: We found that adding topical calcipotriol 0.005% ointment with topical mometasone 0.1% cream has higher efficacy than topical mometasone alone, in the treatment of alopecia areata.

Differential impact of environmental factors on systemic and localized autoimmunity

“…A meta-analysis of available RCTs showed a significant improvement in SLEDAI scores, fatigue (when assessed in two studies), and serum C3; in contrast, serum C4 and anti-dsDNA changes were insignificant ( 359 ). In AA, application of topical calcipotriol, a vitamin D analogue, has been shown to be an effective treatment in most mild-to-moderate patients ( 298 , 360 , 361 ), particularly those with deficiencies ( 362 ). However, these studies in AA often lack placebo arms and randomized, clinical trials with larger groups of patients are greatly needed.…”

Oxidative stress and alopecia areata

“…Narang et al (62) found that patients with alopecia areata were treated with 0.005% calcitriol lotion for 3 months with significant improvement in disease severity. Alam et al (63) also found that external use of 0.005% calcipotriol ointment combined with external use of 0.1% mometasone cream had better efficacy in the treatment of alopecia areata than external use of mometasone alone. However, studies such as double-blind clinical trials with larger samples are needed to further demonstrate the efficacy of vitamin D analogs in combination with other traditional therapies in patients with alopecia areata.…”

Impact of vitamin D on ultraviolet-induced photoaging and skin diseases

“…In another study by Çerman and co-workers [131], 48 patients with mild and moderate AA who failed topical steroids, displayed a total hair regrowth of 27.1% (13/36) at 12 weeks after undergoing calcipotriol monotherapy. Successful treatments have been reported combining calcipotriol with potent corticosteroids such as mometasone, and clobetasol compared to their monotherapeutic efforts [132,133].…”