FRIDAY, March 23 (HealthDay News) -- Conventional non-polarized light contact dermoscopy, polarized light contact dermoscopy and polarized light non-contact dermoscopy give different but complementary views of skin lesions, with some methods better than others for blue- and red-colored lesions, researchers report in the March issue of the Archives of Dermatology.
Cristiane Benvenuto-Andrade, M.D., of the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, and colleagues assessed 90 patients' skin lesions (including 55 melanocytic and 35 non-melanocytic lesions) using the three techniques. Three dermoscopists assessed the images.
The researchers found that agreement between tools involving dermoscopic features was excellent overall, with moderate to excellent agreement for most colors, and fair to perfect agreement for most structures. Blue nevi looked bluer and melanin darker in polarized light contact dermoscopy than non-polarized. Red areas and vessels were better seen with polarized dermoscopy, which may help in cancer diagnosis. Non-polarized light contact dermoscopy gave sharper views of comedolike openings and milialike cysts and regression areas. Polarized light dermoscopy gave clearer views of shiny-white streaks.
"The capabilities of non-polarized light contact dermoscopy, polarized light contact dermoscopy, and polarized light non-contact dermoscopy are not equivalent, but complementary," the authors write.
Abstract
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