Background: Eyebrow loss in the course of frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) is becoming a growing issue among older females. It has a considerable negative impact on patients' quality of life. Since there is no standardized treatment, photobiomodulation with light-emitting diodes (LEDs) could be an option. Here we assess, for the first time, the efficacy of LED therapy in the treatment of eyebrow loss in females with FFA.
Methods: 16 female patients with FFA aged 60-74 years were enrolled in the study. LED therapy was performed once a week for a 10-week session. The LEDs' effectiveness was assessed at the baseline, after 10 irradiations, and 6 months after the end of treatment during a follow-up visit.
Results: The therapy was well tolerated. After 10 irradiations, the total eyebrow hair count increased significantly, as did the number of thick hairs and mid-thick hairs (p = 0.002, p = 0.002, and p = 0.044, respectively). During the follow-up visit, the total number of eyebrow hairs remained significantly higher than before treatment (p = 0.002).
Conclusion: The study revealed that LED therapy seems to be a novel and promising therapeutic option for eyebrow loss in patients with FFA. It is safe and well tolerated and leads to clinically and cosmetically acceptable improvement.
Keywords: frontal fibrosing alopecia; light-emitting diodes; photobiomodulation.