Introduction: The inflammation storm involved in coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) infection and worsening and the psychological stress derived from current quarantine conditions can affect the course of many skin and scalp conditions. This study examined the possible effects of COVID-19 on alopecia areata (AA) relapse in patients suffering from these scalp conditions during the pandemic.
Methods: The study was carried out in the form of an observational cross-sectional type using a questionnaire sent by mail to a cohort of patients affected by AA during the pandemic from March 2020 to October 2020.
Results: During the pandemic, AA relapse was reported in 42.5% of the participants who also declared COVID-19 infection, confirmed by nasopharyngeal swab or hematological analysis. The relapse was reported about 2 months later COVID-19 infection (median of 2.14 months) and 74.0% of these participants continue to experience AA symptoms when the survey was proposed. Only 12.5% of participants reported AA relapse in the absence of COVID-19 infection.
Conclusions: The present study reported a significant relapse in patients suffering from AA and infected by COVID-19. This phenomenon could be attributed to the inflammation storm typical of COVID-19 infection and the psychological stress derived from quarantine conditions.
Keywords: AA; Alopecia areata; COVID-19; Inflammation; Psychological stress.