Novel, Validated, 5-Point Photonumeric Scales for Assessment of the Perioral Region

Abstract

Background The use of validated scales is still considered the gold standard in evaluating the severity of an aesthetic facial condition. Objectives The objective of this investigation was to create and validate 5-point photo numeric scales which assess perioral lines and marionette lines. Methods A medical team created two different novel 5-point photonumeric scale for the assessment of perioral lines and marionette lines. Eleven international raters were involved in the digital validation, while 4 raters performed a live validation. Results For the Croma Static Perioral Lines-Assessment Scale digital inter-rater ICCs were 0.88 [95% CI: 0.85-0.91] in the first rating and 0.87 [0.83-0.90] in the second rating. The digital intra-rater ICCs were 0.90 [95% CI: 0.87-0.92]. In the live rating, the inter-rater ICCs were 0.89 [95% CI: 0.85-0.93] in the first rating and 0.91 [95% CI: 0.87-0.93] in the second rating with an intra-rater ICC of 0.91 [95% CI: 0.88-0.95]. For the Croma Marionette Lines-Assessment scale the digital rating inter-rater ICCs were 0.85 [95% CI: 0.81-0.89] in the first rating and 0.87 [95% CI: 0.84-0.90] in the second rating with an intra-rater ICC of 0.89 [95% CI: 0.88-0.91]. In the live rating, the inter-rater ICCs were 0.73 [95% CI: 0.54-0.83] in the first rating and 0.79 [95% CI: 0.65-0.87] in the second rating with an intra-rater ICC of 0.88 [95% CI: 0.83-0.94]. Conclusions It is to be concluded that the Croma Static Perioral Lines-Assessment Scale and the Croma Marionette Lines-Assessment Scale have exceptional inter- and intra-rater agreements to be justifiably used in the clinical and study setting for all ethnic groups.