Pityriasis amiantacea

Background. Pityriasis amiantacea is a reaction of the skin to various inflammatory diseases (seborrheic dermatitis, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, chronic lichen simplex and others) that manifests by thick gray-yellow scaly crusts surrounding the hair. Сrusts are often attached to hair quite firmly and an effort to remove them leads to hair pulling, that in combination with the inflammatory process and secondary infection can sometimes lead to the formation of secondary traumatic cicatricial alopecia or non-scarring alopecia with subsequent hair growth.
Objective. The aim is to study and analyze modern scientific data regarding the clinical features and treatment of pityriasis amiantacea, and demonstrate our own clinical observation.
Materials and methods. The article discusses current information about pityriasis amiantacea, a rare condition that can be a manifestation of various inflammatory diseases of the scalp. The article discusses in detail the clinical manifestations and variants of the process, and gives a description of the features of primary conditions that can lead to its development. The authors presented their own clinical case of a case of pityriasis amiantacea in a 21-year-old man, which developed as a complication of seborrheic dermatitis and accompanied by alopecia.
Conclusion. There is no single approach to the treatment of pityriasis amiantacea; the choice of therapy depends on the underlying disease. Determining the primary disease that caused the development of pityriasis amiantacea is a difficult diagnostic task, since regardless of the etiology, the manifestations of pityriasis amiantacea on the scalp are almost the same. The persistence of the process and the lack of generally accepted approaches to therapy require further research. It seems especially significant due to the fact that long-term existence and the absence of treatment, it can lead to the formation of secondary traumatic cicatricial alopecia.

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