Asia-Pacific Dermatology and Cosmetology Conference

Biography

Biography: Mustafa Turhan Sahin

Abstract

Hair loss is the most common hair problem and a prompt diagnosis of the type of alopecia may sometimes be extremely challenging. Methods commonly used to investigate may be invasive (biopsy), semi invasive (trichogram) or non-invasive (hair count, weighing shed hair and pull test). 'Trichoscopy' represents a valuable, noninvasive technique for the evaluation of patients with hair loss. It allows for magnified visualization of the hair and scalp skin, and may be performed with a manual dermoscope or a videodermoscope. The usual working magnifications are 20-fold to 70-fold. Although the hand-held dermoscope with 10-fold magnification may give easy and quick evaluation of hair, it does not precisely measure or document. Trichoscopic observations can be broadly grouped as hair signs, vascular patterns, pigment patterns and interfollicular patterns. In this presentation, we will briefly describe the trichoscopic findings in the common categories of cicatricial and non-cicatricial alopecias such as androgenetic alopecia, alopecia areata, telogen effluvium, tinea capitis, trichotillomania, lichen planopilaris, discoid lupus erythematosus and hair shaft disorders. This method is simple, quick and easy to perform, reduces the need for scalp biopsy, is well accepted by patients, and is useful for monitoring treatment and follow-up. It represents a valuable link between clinical and histologic diagnosis. New data show that trichoscopy may easily replace light microscopic evaluation of pulled hairs in genetic hair shaft abnormalities.