Real-World Study Confirms Baricitinib’s Effectiveness for Alopecia Areata

A recent real-world study conducted in China has confirmed that baricitinib, a Janus kinase (JAK) inhibitor, significantly improves hair regrowth in patients with various forms of alopecia areata, including totalis, universalis, and eyebrow/eyelash loss. The study observed a substantial reduction in the Severity of Alopecia Tool (SALT) scores, with an average improvement from 70.21 at baseline to 48.51 after treatment. A total of 47 patients met inclusion criteria. At weeks 12 and 24, 47% and 53% achieved SALT 20, respectively. By the end of treatment (24–104 months), 78.7% achieved SALT 20. The overall SALT score improvement before and after treatment was 48.51 (±30.36), with a hair regrowth rate of 68.10% ± 35.45%. Patients with disease duration ≤ 4 years showed significantly greater SALT score improvement and shorter time to hair regrowth onset compared to those with > 4 years. At week 24, 85.2% and 90.4% achieved ClinRO scores of 0/1 for eyebrow and eyelash alopecia, respectively. Negative correlations were observed between disease duration and hair regrowth rate, a positive correlation was found between treatment duration and hair regrowth rate. Baricitinib was well tolerated with no serious adverse events. These findings align with previous research supporting baricitinib's efficacy and safety in treating severe alopecia areata. The study's results suggest that baricitinib is a promising treatment option for patients with various forms of alopecia areata, offering significant improvements in hair regrowth without serious side effects.