Correlation between Androgentic Alopecia and Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2 Omicron Variant Infection in China

With the widespread prevalence of COVID-19, researchers have suggested a potential link between androgens and COVID-19 outcomes. However, the relationship between COVID-19 and androgenetic alopecia (AGA)—a condition strongly influenced by androgens—remains controversial in existing studies. Notably, there is a lack of large-scale clinical studies, particularly concerning data on the Chinese population after infection with the Omicron variant. Therefore, we aimed to investigate the correlation between AGA and severity of COVID-19 infection during the Omicron wave in China. We conducted this cross-sectional study of 1837 patients infected with Omicron variants, including 921 patients with AGA. The assessment of COVID-19 severity considered factors such as COVID-19 duration, the presence of fever, peak body temperature, and the fever duration. The results indicated that patients with AGA experienced milder overall COVID-19 symptoms than non-AGA patients. AGA was significantly associated with a shorter COVID-19 duration and fever duration, with this correlation being more pronounced in the female population. Males generally had a higher risk of fever (OR = 0.784,95% confidence interval = 0.622–0.99) but experienced a shorter COVID-19 duration. The regular use of antiandrogen therapy prior to Omicron infection did not significantly correlate with COVID-19 disease severity, suggesting that 5-alpha reductase inhibitors–treated patients with AGA may not be able to relieve COVID-19 symptoms.