FRONTAL FIBROSING ALOPECIA AND LICHEN PLANUS PIGMENTOSUS: IS THERE A LINK?
MADAM, Frontal fibrosing alopecia (FFA) is a primary lymphocytic cicatricial alopecia with a distinctive pattern involving the hairline, eyebrows and other hair-bearing areas, first described by Kossard as a progressive recession of the frontal hairline in postmenopausal white women. Miteva et al. have reported
for the first time the occurrence of FFA in African Americans.
Lichen planus pigmentosus (LPPigm), on the other hand, is an uncommon macular variant of lichen planus occurring as diffuse or reticulated macules on sun-exposed areas and in flexures. LPPigm resembles erythema dyschromicum perstans or ashy dermatosis on histology. Ashy dermatosis is characterized by the progressive occurrence of ash-coloured macules with erythematous margins commonly distributed over the trunk and proximal extremities.