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Risk of Pericardial Effusions in Patients With Alopecia Receiving Low-Dose Oral Minoxidil Therapy
TAKE-HOME MESSAGE
- The authors of this cross-sectional study used point-of-care ultrasound to evaluate the prevalence of pericardial effusions among patients with alopecia receiving low-dose oral minoxidil. Small pericardial effusions were noted in 5.8% of the patients receiving low-dose oral minoxidil compared with 6% of controls.
- Although more studies are warranted, this study did not find a significantly increased prevalence of pericardial effusions among patients with alopecia on low-dose oral minoxidil therapy compared with controls.
abstract
This abstract is available on the publisher's site.
Access this abstract nowBACKGROUND
Minoxidil is an anti-hypertensive vasodilator increasingly used off-label for the treatment of alopecia. It is associated with an increased risk of pericardial effusions, with recent reports even in patients on low-dose oral minoxidil (LDOM) therapy.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate whether LDOM is associated with increased prevalence of pericardial effusions in patients with alopecia.
METHODS
In this cross-sectional study, point-of-care ultrasound was used to screen alopecia patients at dermatology appointments. Scans were evaluated by two independent cardiologists for the presence and size of effusions. The prevalence of effusions was compared between patients on LDOM therapy and patients not on minoxidil therapy.
RESULTS
A total of 100 patients were evaluated for pericardial effusion: 51 LDOM patients and 49 control patients. The two groups were similar in terms of age (53.7 vs 54.1; P=0.91), sex (86% vs 73% female; P=0.14), and race. Small pericardial effusions (<1 cm) were identified in 5.8% of LDOM patients and 6% of control patients (P=1), none of which were symptomatic.
LIMITATIONS
This is a small, cross-sectional study with limitations on speculation of causality in confirmed cases.
CONCLUSION
We did not find evidence of increased prevalence of pericardial effusions in a small group of alopecia patients on LDOM. J Drugs Dermatol. 2024;23(9):725-728. doi:10.36849/JDD.8029.
Additional Info
Evaluation of Pericardial Effusions in Alopecia Patients on Low-Dose Oral Minoxidil Therapy
J Drugs Dermatol 2024 Sep 01;23(9)725-728, CM Kincaid, AN Sharma, B Sargent, I Gradus-Pizlo, EH Dineen, NA MesinkovskaFrom MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine.