[Correlation of activated T cells and natural killer (NK) cells with the disease activity of alopecia areata (AA)].

Patients with AA were classified into one of two types (Type A: active AA with less than 3 patches; Type B: active AA with 10 or more patches). The percentages of activated T cell subsets and NK cell subsets in the peripheral blood of Type A were similar to those of the normal control. On the other hand, the percentages of HLA-DR+ Leu2a+ cells, HLA-DR+ Leu3a+ cells, Leu7+ Leu11+ cells and Leu7- Leu11+ cells in Type B were significantly higher than those of the normal control. These findings suggest that activated T cells and NK cells play an important role in the disease activity of AA.