Usefulness of Dermoscopic Findings in the Clinical Evaluation of Beard Alopecia Areata

Objective: The aim of this study is to investigate the usefulness of dermoscopic findings in the clinical evaluation of beard alopecia areata (BAA). Materials and Methods: A total of 38 patients who presented with BAA diagnosed via clinical evaluation and 38 adults who did not have BAA (control group) were included. Their age, skin phototype, localization, severity, scalp involvement, duration of the disease, laboratory findings, and concomitant disorders were noted. Clinical and dermoscopic photos were taken by videodermoscope and recorded. Dermoscopic findings were analyzed according to the checklist described in previous articles for scalp alopecia. Results: Clinical severity of alopecia areata was observed as 13 (34.2%) solitary lesions, 22 (57.9%) multiple lesions, and 3 (11.1%) cases of total beard loss. According to the follicular features, white vellus and tapering hairs were detected 26 (68.4%) and 8 (21.1%) in the patient group, respectively. The difference between white vellus (p=0.001) and tapering hairs (p=0.003) was significant between the patient and the control groups. Other follicular findings, such as yellow dots, black dots, black vellus hairs, broken hairs, hair diameter diversity, and gray-white dots, did not show a significant difference between the patient and control groups. None of the interfollicular findings were significantly different between the two groups. Conclusion: According to our study, a dermoscopic evaluation is useful in the clinical evaluation of BAA. Detection of the white vellus and tapering hairs may guide diagnosing of BAA.