A case series of 46 patients with lichen planopilaris: Demographics, clinical evaluation, and treatment experience

Abstract

Background: Lichen planopilaris (LPP) is as a lymphocytic variant of primary cicatricial alopecia.

Objective: To evaluate the demographics, clinical findings, natural history, and response to various treatments of LPP.

Methods: A retrospective review of medical records of all patients with clinical and histopathological diagnoses of LPP.

Results: Out of 46 patients, there were 38 (82.6%) women and 8 (17.4%) men. There was no clear association of specific medical background and medications with disease onset. The most frequent complaint was itching scalp. Asymptomatic hair loss was observed in 39.2%. LPP involved the entire scalp in 39.1%, vertex in 28.3%, anterior scalp and vertex in 17.4%, fronto-temporal scalp in 6.5%, and posterior and parietal scalp in 6.5%. The topical treatment that caused the highest rate of symptomatic improvement was intralesional injection of corticosteroids. The treatment that led to the highest rate of remission was hydroxychloroquine combined with topical corticosteroid application. The remission rate was 6.5% after 3 months and 33% after 18 months. Of patients who achieved remission, 50% need continuous treatment to maintain remission. No patient had any visible hair regrowth on any treatment.

Conclusion: The range of empiric topical and systemic treatments used gives unsatisfactory results, in LPP patients.

Keywords: Lichen planopilaris; clinical evaluation; treatment.