Jada Pinkett Smith suffers from alopecia areata. He has been talking about it for years

There was an incident involving Will Smith at this year’s Oscars. The actor hit the scene with comedian Chris Rock, who made a joke about his wife’s hairstyle. The reason Smith’s anger was that Jada Pinkett Smith had been struggling with alopecia areata for years. What is this disease manifested in, what are its causes and can it be cured?

1. Jada Pinkett Smith heard the diagnosis a few years ago. In 2018, she spoke publicly about her disease for the first time, and since then she has regularly posted photos and videos on social media in which she reports on the progress of the treatment of the disease.
2. Alopecia areata is an autoimmune disease that causes hair to fall out as a result of damage to its follicles
3. It is estimated that this disease affects 1 percent. population. It most often affects young people, around 30 years of age, women and men alike
4. The authors of one study suggest that black and Hispanic women are more likely to suffer from alopecia areata.
5. A coverage of the 2022 Oscars is available here
6. More information can be found on the Onet homepage

What is alopecia areata?

Alopecia areata is an autoimmune skin disease. It is manifested by the occurrence of the so-called alopecia foci, i.e. patches of smooth skin in the place where it is hairy. These changes can be local, but also extensive, covering the entire hairy area of ​​the body (usually the head), both temporary and permanent. Alopecia can occur anywhere on the body, including hair on the head, eyebrows, eyelashes, hair on the arms, legs, and armpits, as well as pubic hair.

The disease can form one or several foci – then we are talking about multifocal alopecia areata, but it can also affect the entire head (total alopecia areata) or one part of the body, not necessarily the head (focal alopecia areata). A more advanced type of condition is generalized alopecia areata, where the hair loss affects the entire body). It happens that the patient goes bald in an unusual way; then the patties “form” stripes / lines or the hair is lost from the center of the head to the outside; it also happens that alopecia spreads without creating clear foci.

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The rest of the text below the video.

The causes of alopecia areata

The causes of the disease are still unknown. Alopecia areata is most likely the result of several factors: from genetic, through immunological, to mental and related to the nervous system. In search of the etiology of the disease, attention is also paid to hormonal disorders, atopy and long-term stress.

The disease often coexists with other conditions characterized by autoimmune phenomena, such as Hashimoto’s disease, type 1 diabetes and lupus erythematosus.

Some scientists have suggested that black women, including Hispanic women, may have an increased risk of alopecia areata. In a study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology Symposium Proceedings (2018), they were found to be more likely to develop the disease than white women. The analysis of over 63 women (divided into two groups) showed that alopecia areata occurs in them 2,63%. (first group) and 5,23 percent. (the second group) more often than in white women. Interestingly, this percentage was also higher (1,14%) when Hispanic ancestry was taken into account.

Alopecia areata – the course of the disease

In the early stages of the disease, a patient suffering from alopecia areata notices that in one or more places on the head the hair is noticeably thinning, and eventually it falls out. This is because inflammatory cells attack the hair follicles, causing them to weaken and then fall out.

This effect often reverses – the hair grows temporarily (although it may fall out again), but sometimes it does not happen, despite intensive and long-term treatment (then we are talking about malignant alopecia areata).

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The course of the disease and the severity of symptoms is an individual matter. In the acute phase, inflammation may also affect the nails, causing changes in them of different morphology and intensity. The nature of the disease can also lead to psychological disturbances resulting from a feeling of lack of self-acceptance, which can aggravate the inflammation and thus the symptoms.

Diagnosis and treatment of alopecia areata

Alopecia areata is diagnosed by a dermatologist or a trichologist who specializes in scalp diseases. The diagnosis of the disease consists mainly in conducting a detailed interview with the patient (taking into account family diseases, especially autoimmune diseases) and physical examination of the scalp (if necessary, also of nails and eyes). Only later does the doctor refer for specialized tests, e.g. dermatoscopy or laboratory tests (usually related to the work of the thyroid gland).

Characteristic for the diagnosis of alopecia areata is also the so-called pull test. It involves grabbing a section of hair (usually around 40 to 60) in three different areas of the head and pulling them three times to see if and how many of them fall out. If 10 or more hairs are left in the hand after pulling at each point, the test is considered positive.

Treatment of alopecia areata involves the use of substances that stimulate the growth of the hair follicles. For this purpose, the following applies: glucocorticosteroids (administered intradermally and topically), cygnoline and minoxidil, and as part of systemic treatment also cyclosporin. Patients also undergo such treatments as photochemotherapy (PUVA or PUVA-turban) and narrowband UVB phototherapy, as well as treatments associated with cosmetology: mesotherapy, cryomassage or carboxytherapy.

Not only Jada Pinkett Smith

Many famous people struggle with alopecia areata. In addition to Jada Pinkett Smith, there are also American actresses Viola Davis, Neve Campbell, model Tyra Banks, actors Sean Ward and Christopher Reeve, singer Jesy Nelson and journalist and activist Jemima Khan.

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In Poland, the subject of alopecia areata is discussed on Instagram by Aleksandra Przybylska, known as bald Ola.

We encourage you to listen to the latest episode of the RESET podcast. This time we devote it to emotions. Often times, a particular sight, sound or smell brings to mind a similar situation that we have already experienced. What opportunities does this give us? How does our body react to such an emotion? You will hear about this and many other aspects related to emotions below.

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