Insulin Resistance in Patients with Androgenic Alpoecia”

Abstract

Background: Androgenic Up to half of men and females are susceptible to androgenetic alopecia (AGA), a genetically determined condition caused by an overreaction to androgens. The loss of scalp hair in male-pattern baldness is related to androgen metabolism and the hair development cycle, both of which insulin is thought to regulate (Nabaie et al., 2009). We found significant differences in insulin, glucose, and HOMA-IR between the patients and controls when we defined hyperinsulinaemia as a fasting serum insulin level of > 10 U/mL. Androgenic alopecia patients had elevated insulin, glucose, and HOMA-IR compared to healthy individuals. This shows that individuals with androgenic alopecia may have unique metabolic profiles, which points to possible underlying mechanisms in the aetiology and evolution of AGA. Based on our findings, we know that HOMA-IR is positively correlated with insulin levels, and that a higher HOMA-IR is strongly linked to being female.