Trichoscopic Analysis of Androgenetic Alopecia in Men Less than Forty Years of Age: A Retrospective, Observational Study from a Tertiary Care Hospital

Introduction: Androgenetic Alopecia (AGA) is the most common cause of hair loss worldwide. It is a non-scarring, progressive, patterned, and androgen-dependent condition seen in genetically predisposed individuals. AGA presents as gradual loss of terminal scalp hair. Trichoscopy is non-invasive dermoscopic imaging of the scalp and hair. It helps assess the disease activity, severity, and prognosis in trichology. Aim: To identify and evaluate the association of trichoscopic features with severity of AGA in men under forty years of age. Materials and Methods: The present retrospective, observational study was conducted in the Dermatology Department at Medical College and Research Institute, Bengaluru, Karnataka, India. The duration of the study was 12 months between January 2019 to December, 2019. Fifty men under the age of 40 with AGA were enrolled. Diagnosis was made based on clinical examination of all the areas of the scalp. Age, history, clinical type, and duration of disease were noted. Trichoscopic evaluation of the scalp was done and relevant images were captured. A digital trichoscope (Firefly DE330T videodermatoscope USA) was used. AGA grades 1 & 2 were categorised as mild; grades 3 & 4 as moderate, and grade 5 & 6 as severe. Chi Square test was used for statistical analysis. The results were considered statistically significant if the p