aromatherapy and alopecia

Doug Skrecky (oberon@vcn.bc.ca)
Fri, 26 Feb 1999 19:16:09 -0800 (PST)

Authors
Hay IC. Jamieson M. Ormerod AD.
Institution
Department of Dermatology, Aberdeen Royal Infirmary, Foresterhill, Scotland. ad.ormerod@abdn.ac.uk
Title
Randomized trial of
aromatherapy. Successful treatment for alopecia areata. Source
Archives of Dermatology. 134(11):1349-52, 1998 Nov. Abstract
OBJECTIVE: To investigate the efficacy of aromatherapy in the treatment of patients with alopecia areata. DESIGN: A randomized, double-blind, controlled trial of 7 months' duration, with follow-up at 3 and 7 months. SETTING: Dermatology outpatient department. PARTICIPANTS: Eighty-six patients diagnosed as having alopecia areata. INTERVENTION: Eighty-six patients were randomized into 2 groups. The active group massaged essential oils (thyme, rosemary, lavender, and cedarwood) in a mixture of carrier oils (jojoba and grapeseed) into their scalp daily. The control group used only carrier oils for their massage, also daily. MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Treatment success was evaluated on sequential photographs by 2 dermatologists
(I.C.H. and A.D.O.) independently. Similarly, the degree of improvement was
measured by 2 methods: a 6-point scale and computerized analysis of traced areas of alopecia. RESULTS: Nineteen (44%) of 43 patients in the active group showed improvement compared with 6 (15%) of 41 patients in the control group
(P = .008). An alopecia scale was applied by blinded observers on sequential
photographs and was shown to be reproducible with good interobserver agreement (kappa = 0.84). The degree of improvement on photographic assessment was significant (P = .05). Demographic analysis showed that the 2 groups were well matched for prognostic factors. CONCLUSIONS: The results show aromatherapy to be a safe and effective treatment for alopecia areata. Treatment with these essential oils was significantly more effective than treatment with the carrier oil alone (P = .008 for the primary outcome measure). We also successfully applied an evidence-based method to an alternative therapy.