title: Association of metabolic syndrome with female pattern hair loss in women: A case-control study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Several studies have addressed the association of metabolic syndrome (MetS) with androgenetic alopecia (AGA) in men with few reports focusing on this association in females. The aim of this work was to investigate the association of MetS among Egyptian women with different stages of female pattern hair loss (FPHL) and to compare the results with age- and sex-matched controls.
  
  
  METHODS
  This study included 90 female participants, 45 cases with different stages of FPHL classified according to the Ludwig scale and 45 healthy control participants that were age- and sex-matched with the cases. Assessment of MetS components was done according to the Adult Treatment Panel III criteria.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Compared to the control group, a statistically significant association was found between FPHL and the presence of MetS with a tendency to increase with the severity of FPHL being greater in stage III > stage II > stage I. Among metabolic syndrome components, waist circumference (WC) (OR 5.6, 95% CI 2.2 -13.9, P = 0.0002) and hypertension (HTN) (OR 3.5, 95% CI 1.3-8.9, P = 0.008) were revealed as the most important factors associated with FPHL. WC also tended to increase with the severity of FPHL.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  We demonstrated a significant association between MetS and FPHL. Women with FPHL, particularly if associated with an increased WC or hypertension, should be screened for MetS criteria for early identification and management.
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Venereology and Andrology, Ain Shams University, Abasseya Square, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Mahira H
authors.initials: MH
authors.lastname: El Sayed
authors.affiliation: Department of Dermatology, Venereology and Andrology, Ain Shams University, Abasseya Square, Cairo, Egypt.
authors.forename: Mahmoud A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Abdallah
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology and Venereology, National Research Centre, El-Bhouth St, Dokki, Giza, Egypt. dalia.g.aly@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Dalia G
authors.initials: DG
authors.lastname: Aly
authors.affiliation: Departments of Dermatology and Venereology, National Research Centre, El-Bhouth St, Dokki, Giza, Egypt.
authors.forename: Nohha H
authors.initials: NH
authors.lastname: Khater
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000505:Alopecia / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*; D001786:Blood Glucose / Q000378:metabolism; D016022:Case-Control Studies; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL / Q000097:blood; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL / Q000097:blood; D004534:Egypt / Q000453:epidemiology; D005215:Fasting; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000453:epidemiology*; D024821:Metabolic Syndrome / Q000097:blood / Q000453:epidemiology*; D008875:Middle Aged; D015995:Prevalence; D012307:Risk Factors; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D014280:Triglycerides / Q000097:blood; D055105:Waist Circumference; D055815:Young Adult
chemical_list: D001786:Blood Glucose; D008076:Cholesterol, HDL; D008078:Cholesterol, LDL; D014280:Triglycerides