Presented at Hair Congress
Rica Silva-Mallari, MD, FPDS

In the recent 6th World Congress for Hair Research in Cairns, Australia held on June 16-19, 2010, the PDS’s very own Dr. Alma Atilano Bautista, a graduate of Jose Reyes Memorial Medical Center, presented her paper A Comparison of the Efficacy and Safety of 5% Garlic Gel and Clobetasol Propionate Ointment in the Treatment of Alopecia Areata: An Investigator – Blinded Randomized Controlled Trial.

Amidst foreign studies that tackled issues from another perspective – molecular level, receptors, genes, genomes, signalling pathways – Dr. Bautista’s presentation was simple, practical and promising. The study sought an alternative to the longterm use of steroids for alopecia areata, and the native Ilocos garlic in a 5% gel formulation was compared to clobetasol propionate ointment.

A total of 34 patients were randomly assigned into two groups, to receive either clobetasol propionate ointment or garlic gel applied twice a day for three months. Total hair counts on the patches were recorded and difference in hair density between the two groups from baseline to the end of the third month was compared using the Kolmogov-Smirnov Test. Three independent observers performed efficacy evaluation using a terminal hair regrowth score.
Results showed that in the steroid group, 5 out of 15 patients had no hair growth, while 10 had either little or sufficient hair growth. In the garlic gel group, 1patient had no hair growth, 1 withdrew from treatment, while the rest had good growth. At the end of the third month, the number of hairs strands was statistically higher in the garlic group compared to the steroid group (p-value<0.001). The Anova-F test showed that the monthly increase in hair strands in the garlic group was significant (p=0.002) compared to the steroid group (p=1.21). There were three patients from the steroid group who had folliculitis and pruritus; there were no side effects noted in the garlic gel group.
The research concluded that 5% garlic gel is a more effective and safer topical therapy for alopecia areata than clobetasol propionate ointment.

The lone presentor from Southeast Asia fielded questions from the interested audience that ranged from “How about irritation or allergic reaction to the garlic? How did you make sure that there will be no irritation?” to “What is the smell of the garlic gel, did it smell bad?” According to Dr. Bautista, patch testing was done on all patients in the pilot study a year before the randomized controlled trial. She further replied that “Yes, it smells like garlic,” but patients claimed that a few minutes after applying the gel on the scalp, the scent was no longer noticeable and it did not bother them at all. The scent could not be taken out because that might affect the efficacy of the gel. Asked also about the efficacy of garlic for AA if taken orally, she said oral intake of garlic has not been tested for alopecia areata so far.
Dr. Bautista’s presentation was truly a remarkable achievement – a moment where we delegates from the Philippines felt truly proud to be Pinoy!