Clinical Analysis of 1,360 Patients Presenting with Male Pattern Hair Loss

Kim, Jong Baik; Ro, Byung In

Abstract

BACKGROUND
To date, numerous studies have investigated the epidemiology and clinical characteristics of male pattern hair loss (MPHL).
OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this study was to evaluate a large number of long-term MPHL patients and to compare them to shorter term ones from other studies.
METHODS
We retrospectively reviewed charts of patients diagnosed with MPHL during a 10-year period at the alopecia clinic at the Department of Dermatology of Myongji Hospital.
RESULTS
Among 3,549 alopecia patients who had visited the hospital's alopecia clinic, 1,360 were patients demonstrating MPHL (38.3%). The most frequent age group was patients in their 20's (30.1%) followed by those in their 30's (28.2%), 40's (17.2%), 50's (9.9%), and teenagers (8.9%). There were 599 MPHL patients (44.0%) with a paternal familial predisposition, 182 (13.4%) with a maternal familial predisposition, and 118 (8.7%) with familial predisposition on maternal and paternal sides. MPHL was classified based on the Norwood-Hamilton classification: type 2 (20.0%), type 3v (19.4%), and type 3a (16.3%) were the most frequent. Abnormalities in total serum cholesterol were found in 15.1% patients and triglycerides in 36.1% of patients. The most common comorbidity was seborrheic dermatitis, followed by hypertension, hyperlipidemia, diabetes mellitus, and gastrointestinal diseases.
CONCLUSION
This study demonstrated that the period of MPHL diagnosis and treatment becomes earlier in age and milder regarding MPHL type, which may be due to early puberty in teenagers.