Abstract
Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that causes a non-healing form of hair loss. Stress is one of the crucial
factors, which contributes to its development as it increases the corticotropin releasing hormone, creating an
inflammatory environment and the immune privilege loss around the hair follicle. Case report: A 37-year-old woman
with a history of alopecia areata, who presents progressive hair loss after a twin pregnancy announcement, which
triggers a considerable level of psychological stress. The physical examination shows absence of hair on the entire
body surface. Once lactation ended, treatment with topical corticosteroids and tofacitinib (janus kinase inhibitor)
was started, resulting in hair recovery. Within the environmental factors that contribute to the development of alopecia areata, stress is one of the most important ones. Therefore, knowing about its physiopathology allows for the understanding of how stress triggers some autoimmune diseases, as well as why novel therapies including januskinase inhibitors are useful for treating them.
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Copyright (c) 2022 Angelica María González-Clavijo, Johiner Jahir Vanegas-Antolinez, Heitmar-Santiago Infante-Fernández, Katerine Quintero-Martínez, Sebastián Parrado-García, Santiago Piñeros-Cortés, Camilo Ochoa-Abella