Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2022 Feb;63(1):15-26.
doi: 10.1111/ajd.13695. Epub 2021 Aug 23.

Dermoscopy, confocal microscopy and optical coherence tomography features of main inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases: A systematic review

Stefania Guida  1 , Sabrina Longhitano  1 , Marco Ardigò  2 , Riccardo Pampena  3 , Silvana Ciardo  1 , Laura Bigi  1 , Victor Desmond Mandel  1   2 , Cristina Vaschieri  1 , Marco Manfredini  1 , Claudia Pezzini  1 , Federica Arginelli  1 , Francesca Farnetani  1 , Nicola Zerbinati  4 , Caterina Longo  1   3 , Giovanni Pellacani  1   5
Affiliations

Dermoscopy, confocal microscopy and optical coherence tomography features of main inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases: A systematic review

Stefania Guida et al. Australas J Dermatol. 2022 Feb.

Abstract

Background/objectives: Non-invasive skin imaging features of main skin inflammatory and autoimmune diseases have been reported, although a comprehensive review of their correlation with histopathologic features is currently lacking. Therefore, the aim of this paper was to review the correlation of dermoscopic, reflectance confocal microscopy (RCM) and optical coherence tomography (OCT) criteria of main inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases with their corresponding histopathologic criteria correlation.

Methods: Studies on human subjects affected by main inflammatory and autoimmune diseases, defining the correlation of dermoscopic, RCM or OCT with histopathologic criteria, were included in the review. Five groups of diseases were identified and described: psoriasiform, spongiotic and interface dermatitis, bullous diseases and scleroderma.

Results: Psoriasiform dermatitis was typified by white scales, corresponding to hyperkeratosis, and vessels, observed with RCM and OCT. Spongiosis, corresponding to dark areas within the epidermis with RCM and OCT, was the main feature of spongiotic dermatitis. Interface dermatitis was characterised by dermoepidermal junction obscuration. Blisters, typical of bullous diseases, were visualised as dark areas with RCM and OCT while scleroderma lesions were characterised by dermoscopic fibrotic beams, related to dermal thickness variations, with specific OCT and histopathologic correlations.

Conclusions: Although the role of RCM and OCT has yet to be defined in clinical practice, non-invasive skin imaging shows promising results on inflammatory and autoimmune skin diseases, due to the correlation with histopathologic features.

Keywords: bullous disease; confocal microscopy; dermoscopy; inflammation; optical coherence tomography; scleroderma.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Pellacani G, Ulrich M, Casari A et al. Grading keratinocyte atypia in actinic keratosis: a correlation of reflectance confocal microscopy and histopathology. J. Eur. Acad. Dermatol. Venereol. 2015; 29: 2216-21. https://doi.org/10.1111/jdv.13215.
    1. Guida S, Arginelli F, Farnetani F et al. Clinical applications of in vivo and ex vivo confocal microscopy. Appl. Sci. 2021; 11: 1979. https://doi.org/10.1111/bjd.19017.
    1. Giuffrida R, Conforti C, Di Meo N et al. Use of noninvasive imaging in the management of skin cancer. Curr. Opin. Oncol. 2020; 32: 98-105. https://doi.org/10.1097/CCO.0000000000000611.
    1. Conforti C, Giuffrida R, Vezzoni R et al. Dermoscopy and the experienced clinicians. Int. J. Dermatol. 2020; 59: 16-22. https://doi.org/10.1111/ijd.14512.
    1. Guida S, Ciardo S, De Pace B et al. The influence of MC1R on dermal morphological features of photo-exposed skin in women revealed by reflectance confocal microscopy and optical coherence tomography. Exp. Dermatol. 2019; 28: 1321-7.

Publication types

MeSH terms

LinkOut - more resources