Hair loss following COVID-19 infection - the state of current knowledge and treatment approaches.

Abstract

Introduction: Telogen effluvium is a non-scarring hair loss that can occur after COVID-19 infection. It usually occurs after about 3 months, causes diffused hair loss and lasts up to 6 months. The purpose of this narrative review is to collect and summarize the effects of potential methods to promote hair regrowth in patients after COVID-19 infection.
 Material and method: The article reviews available in PubMed and ResearchGate databases, studies on telogen effluvium and SARS-CoV-2. Due to the limited literature, articles on telogenetic hair loss progressing independently of COVID-19 were also included in the review.
 Results: Hair loss after COVID-19 infection occurs in almost 30% of patients. This is likely related to pro-inflammatory cytokines released during infection and the pro-thrombotic effect of the virus. Telogen effluvium is the most common type of alopecia occurring after COIVD-19 infection - about 86% of all cases. It affects women more often than men. It seems that its severity may correlate with the severity of the infection. Other than female gender and a history of chronic disease, it is unlikely to find any other contributing factors. Effective treatments seem to include the use of oral supplements such as vitamin D, polyunsaturated fatty acids and zinc. In addition, topical application of minoxidil and high-platelet plasma treatments have shown good outcomes.
 Conclusions: Given the fairly common occurrence of hair loss after COVID-19 infection, it seems reasonable to seek the most effective strategies for its treatment. At present, it appears that the best results are obtained by combining different treatment approaches.