A Baltimore doctor uses antidiabetic drugs to treat hair loss

A Baltimore doctor helps Black women treat hair loss with a drug typically used to treat other conditions.

Dr. Crystal Aguh, a dermatologist who directs the Ethnic Skin Program at Johns Hopkins Medicine, has begun broad-use testing of a diabetes drug called metformin. For study participants, Aguh identified the similarity between scalp scars and organ scars in diabetic patients. Aguh believes that using metformin may help treat scalp scarring and potentially slow or reverse hair loss.

“Has anyone tried to attack the scar on their scalp?” She he said “We had to give women a better chance to regrow their hair.”

Aguha’s treatment plan addresses central centrifugal scarring alopecia, which is different from alopecia areata without scarring. Her research also shows that up to 15% of black women suffer from this specific type, which can also have a genetic basis.

According to Aguha, low doses of metformin, typically used to regulate insulin levels, will help reduce scarring on the scalp. The relatively inexpensive drug can be secure for long-term use.

Aguh gave her patients the cream in small doses and located improvement in hair loss after six to eight weeks of use. In six patients, hair grew back in some areas. Now it hopes to begin clinical trials to get the drug officially approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

“I am a scientist, but above all a human being,” she said. “I want people to be better. If I left the hair clinic because no one was losing their hair, that would be great.”

Meanwhile, Aguh also listed suggestions for stopping and detecting hair loss in Black women. On the Johns Hopkins Aguh website states that This demographic is more susceptible to traction alopecia, often brought on by heat, chemicals, or tight styling that puts stress on the hair root. Aguh noted that looser styles and fewer heat can keep hair healthier for longer.

Aguh also suggests contacting a dermatologist to develop latest treatment plans for people noticing less thickness and more visibility of the scalp.

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