UV light set‐ups for vitiligo photography, a comparative study on image quality and ease of use

Abstract

BackgroundUltraviolet (UV) light is an essential tool to assess the extent, spreading and staging of vitiligo. Different UV light set‐ups are used for vitiligo photography, including the following: (i) hand‐held Wood’s lamps; (ii) soft boxes with UV lamps; (iii) UV flash attached to the camera; and (iv) high output UV flash.ObjectiveOur objective was to compare UV light set‐ups for vitiligo photography regarding image quality and ease of use.MethodsPatients with vitiligo lesions with unclear borders were included. Two images were made with all four UV set‐ups per patient, for a large and a small area. Image quality was scored separately by three blinded vitiligo experts on five criteria: overall quality, clearness of borders, contrast and sharpness and for larger areas the shadows. The two professional medical photographers were asked to score the ease of use for each set‐up.ResultsA total of 88 photos were assessed from 11 patients. For larger areas, the frequency of a ‘good’ or ‘very good’ overall quality rating was 12.1% (Wood’s), 6.1% (soft boxes), 15.2% (camera flash) and 78.8% (high output flash). For smaller areas, the score ‘good’ or ‘very good’ was given to 54.5%, 3%, 66.6% and 84.8% in the same order. For the shadow criteria, each set‐up scored below 40% on a 'good' or 'very good' score. The high output flash was scored as most easy to use by the photographers.ConclusionWhen comparing four different UV light set‐ups for vitiligo photography, we concluded that the UV set‐ups strongly influenced the quality scores of the obtained images. The high output flash scored best for both small and large areas and for ease of use. For small areas, Wood’s lamp and camera flash were acceptable. All set‐ups scored badly for shadows, and more research is needed to find the optimal exposure to avoid shadows.

Assessment of malignant melanoma lesions using violet‐light dermoscopy: A case report

“…Ultraviolet cameras are commonly used in the field of cosmetology because they can clearly detect lightly pigmented spots on the skin, observed as gray‐black areas in the grayscale image, that cannot be seen with a typical color camera 2 . Additionally, UV cameras are occasionally used to evaluate skin diseases associated with pigment abnormalities such as pigment regeneration in vitiligo vulgaris 3–5 . Although these cameras use light sources in the UVAI wavelength range of 340–380 nm, violet light (380–430 nm), which is visible, can also identify faint melanin spots that are not visible to the naked eye 2 .…”

“…2 Additionally, UV cameras are occasionally used to evaluate skin diseases associated with pigment abnormalities such as pigment regeneration in vitiligo vulgaris. [3][4][5] Although these cameras use light sources in the UVAI wavelength range of 340-380 nm, violet light (380-430 nm), which is visible, can also identify faint melanin spots that are not visible to the naked eye. 2 The DZ-D100 dermoscope is a new digital camera supplied with a violet LED (405 nm) in addition to the common white light LED.…”

Evaluation of Dermoscopic Features in Facial Melanosis with Wood Lamp Examination

“…Wood lamp examination is another non-invasive technique that helps in the diagnosis of pigmentary disorders. It uses a specific wavelength light source to distinguish depth of pigmentation depending on different degrees of auto-fluorescence [4]. There are very few studies that have evaluated dermoscopic and Wood lamp findings for the diagnosis and classification of all facial melanoses [5]; some studies have only focused on melasma [6][7][8].…”

Noninvasive Assessment of Mycotic Nail Tissue Using an Ultraviolet Fluorescence Excitation Imaging System

“…The native fluorescence of biological matter has long been used for the diagnosis and treatment of a range of diseases such as pigment disorders or skin cancer [16,17]. Wood lamps, hand‐held devices emitting long‐wave UV radiation, have long been a mainstay in assessing pigment disorders and skin infections but not been implemented for nail disease due to reported poor detectability of fungal fluorescence.…”