Nara Abdul Rahman
September 23, 2024
Dr Agu believes that the use of metformin could address scar tissue on the scalp, potentially slowing or reversing hair loss.
A Baltimore doctor is helping treat hair loss in black women with a drug normally used for another condition.
Dr. Crystal Agu, a dermatologist who directs the ethnic skin program at Johns Hopkins Medicine, has begun testing the widespread use of the diabetes drug metformin. Agu has determined similarities between scarring in the scalp tissue of study participants and scarring in the organs of people with diabetes. Agu believes that metformin use may address scarring on the head and slow or reverse hair loss.
“Has anyone tried to attack the scar tissue in the scalp?,” she told the Baltimore Banner. “We had to give women a better chance at their hair growing back.”
Agu’s treatment plan is for central centrifugal cicatricial alopecia, which is different from non-cicatricial alopecia areata, and her research has found that up to 15 percent of black women suffer from this particular type of alopecia, which may be genetic.
Agu said low doses of metformin, a drug commonly used to regulate insulin, could help reduce scalp scarring. The drug is relatively inexpensive and safe for long-term use.
Agu gave his patients low doses of the cream and saw hair loss improve after six to eight weeks of use — six patients saw some hair regrow. He now hopes to begin clinical trials to get the drug formally approved by the US Food and Drug Administration.
“I’m a scientist, but I’m a human being first,” she says. “I want people to get better. It would be great if I could retire from the hair clinic and no one would have to suffer from alopecia.”
Meanwhile, Agu also offers tips on how to prevent and detect hair loss in black women. On the Johns Hopkins website, Agu says black women are more susceptible to traction alopecia, which is often caused by heat, chemicals, or tight hairstyles that put stress on the hair roots. Agu noted that adopting looser hairstyles and less heat can help keep hair healthy for longer.
Agu is also developing new treatment plans for those who notice their hair thinning and scalp becoming more visible, and recommends consulting a dermatologist.
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