Association of Serum IL-23 and IL-17 Levels with Alopecia Areata

Background: Alopecia areata is a chronic, non-scarring autoimmune condition characterized by patchy hair loss. Materials and Methods: From December 2023 to April 2024, case-control research was carried out at Al-Diwaniya Teaching Hospital. It comprised 40 formally identified alopecia areata patients as well as 40 healthy controls who were compared for gender as well as age. Comprehensive dermatology tests as well as a thorough history-taking process were performed on the participants. According to the quantity as well as the size of the alopecic patches or the degree of hair loss, alopecia areata was divided into moderate and severe variants. Levels of serum Interleukin-17 and Interleukin-23 were assessed as well as compared to illness features. Results: Compared to healthy controls, alopecia areata patients had noticeably higher levels of interleukin-17. Nevertheless, there was not a statistically significant variance in interleukin-17 levels according to the length of the illness, family history, or recurrence. Interleukin-17A levels were slightly more elevated among participants without a family history as well as those whose condition had been present for less than a year, but those variations weren't statistically significant. Furthermore, compared to controls, alcoholics' interleukin-23 levels were noticeably greater. Conclusion: Alopecia areata patients had significantly higher serum levels of interleukin-23 as well as interleukin-17, which may indicate a function for these molecules in the pathophysiology of the disease. The autoimmune processes that underlie alopecia areata might get exacerbated by the dysregulation of these cytokines.