P9.126 Effects of the mixture of herbal medicine extracts on hair growth in C3H mice and patients with androgenetic alopecia

M. Tanaka¹, T. Yamaguchi¹, D. Matsuura¹, Z. Kawakami¹, S. Takeda¹, M. Aburada¹, S. Watanabe², S. Arase³

Tsumura & CO., Medicinal Evaluation Laboratory,Ibaraki, Japan¹, Dept. of Dermatology, Teikyo University School of Medicine, Tokyo,Japan², Dept. of Dermatology, The University of Tokushima School of Medicine, Tokushima, Japan³

It is well known that the increase in cutaneous blood flow (CVF) is an important factor for hair growth stimulation. We first found that ginger (Zingiberis Rhizoma) extract stimulated CVF when applied topically. Then we tested large series of combination of ginger extract with other herbal medicines, and finally found that the mixture of Zingiberis Rhizoma with Swertiae Herba, Ginseng Radix and Moutan Cortex extracts could enhance CVF significantly higher than the ginger extract alone. Topical application of the mixture to the backs of C3H mice could accelerate anagen induction and stimulate hair growth similarly to 1% minoxidil solution. We, therefore, studied the effects of the mixture in patients with androgenetic alopecia of slight or moderate Ogata scale type II, III and IV. 47 patients, between 30 to 54 years of age, were enrolled. The mixture was topically applied once a day for 6 months and the efficacy was evaluated before (baseline), 3 and 6 months after treatment by hair density, hair diameter, percentage of thin hairs, percentage of telogen hairs, and elongation rate of hairs, using the phototrichogram. Circular areas of 1cm diameter at the vertex and frontal hairline area were chosen for the assessment. The patients treated with the mixture showed a significant improvement from the baseline in all respects at either site. All these results suggest that the extract mixture of Zingiberis Rhizoma, Swertiae Herba, Ginseng Radix and Moutan Cortex is a potent stimulator of the hair growth and is very useful for androgenetic alopecia.