A Baltimore doctor is helping Black women treat hair loss with a medicine typically used for another illness.
Dr. Crystal Aguh, a dermatologist who leads Johns Hopkins Medicine’s ethnic skin program, has begun testing the wide-ranging use of a diabetes drug named metformin. For the study’s participants, Aguh determined the similarity between the scarring of their scalp tissue and the scarring of diabetic patients’ organs. Aguh believes using metformin could tackle the scar tissue on one’s head and potentially slow or reverse hair loss.
“Has anyone tried to attack the scar tissue in the scalp?” she said to the Baltimore Banner. “We had to give women a better chance to get their hair to grow back.”
Aguh’s treatment plan is for central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, which differs from non-scarring alopecia areata. Her research also shows that up to 15% of Black women suffer from this specific type, which may also be genetic.
According to Aguh, low doses of metformin, typically used to regulate insulin, can help reduce scalp scarring. The relatively affordable drug is also safe for long-term use.
Aguh has given her patients a low-dose cream and found improvements in their hair loss after six to eight weeks of usage. Six patients even had hair regrow in some areas. Now, she hopes to begin clinical trials to get the drug officially approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
“I’m a scientist but a person first,” she said. “I want people to get better. If I’m retired from the hair clinic because no one has hair loss, that would be great.”
In the meantime, Aguh also listed tips to prevent and detect hair loss in Black women. On the Johns Hopkins website, Aguh states that
this demographic is more prone to traction alopecia, often caused by heat, chemicals, or tight styles that stress the hair root. Aguh noted that embracing looser hairstyles and less heat may keep the hair healthier for longer.Aguh also suggests contacting a dermatologist as she develops new treatment plans for those noticing less thickness and more scalp visibility.
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