Considerable hair regrowth can be achieved in children with alopecia areata with the use of a novel plant-based drug, according to research presented during the first late-breaking news session at the annual meeting of the European Academy of Dermatology and Venereology.
In the RAAINBOW study, a greater mean relative improvement in the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) scores at 24 weeks was recorded in children who had been treated topically with coacillium (22.9%) than in those who had received a topical placebo (-8.0%), with a significant 31% overall difference (P < .0001).
"Coacillium cutaneous solution was used for the first time for treatment of alopecia areata and also for the first time used in a pediatric population," the presenting investigator Ulrike Blume-Peytavi, MD, said at the meeting.
"It's well tolerated, and in fact what is interesting is, it has a durable response, even after treatment discontinuation," added Blume-Peytavi, who is the deputy head of the Department of Dermatology, Venerology and Allergology at Charité-Universitätsmedizin Berlin in Germany.
Backing the Botanical?
Paola Pasquali, MDa dermatologist at Pius Hospital de Valls in Spain, who co-chaired the session where the findings were presented, commented, "Thank you for showing that chocolate is great! I knew it.
