Q. Can you shed any light on recent studies for alopecia? My 9-year-old granddaughter had a beautiful head of hair, which totally fell out four years ago. She has seen many doctors, but nothing has helped. Is there anything that can be done for this life-altering disease? Any promising studies either here or abroad? A. There is a new type of medication that offers some hope against alopecia areata. This is an autoimmune condition in which the immune system attacks patches of hair follicles, causing partial or complete baldness. Dermatologists at the Cleveland Clinic have reported on a preliminary study involving a powerful drug approved for treating rheumatoid arthritis (JAMA Dermatology, online, March 29, 2017). The drug, tofacitinib (Xeljanz), is known as a Janus kinase inhibitor. The researchers found that it helped regrow hair, though there was tremendous variability. Some people had 90 percent regrowth, while others achieved minimal improvement. This medication