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. 2021 Oct-Dec;25(4):156-161.

Clinical, dermoscopic and histological assessment of melanocytic lesions: a comparative study of the accuracy of the diagnostic methods

E Kalloniati  1 , D Cavouras  2 , K M Plachouri  1 , E Geropoulou  3 , G Sakellaropoulos  4 , S Georgiou  1
Affiliations

Clinical, dermoscopic and histological assessment of melanocytic lesions: a comparative study of the accuracy of the diagnostic methods

E Kalloniati et al. Hippokratia. 2021 Oct-Dec.

Abstract

Background: Worldwide, the incidence of melanoma is increasing, while late diagnosis is related to poor prognosis. A significant risk marker for melanoma is the presence of atypical nevi; therefore, it is of outstanding importance to make accurate clinical classification of common benign nevi, atypical nevi, and melanomas. The non-invasive method of dermoscopy allowed for the visualization of structures invisible to the naked eye and undoubtedly advanced the assessment of melanocytic lesions to a new dimension. This study aimed to evaluate the sensitivity and specificity of naked-eye examination and dermoscopy in diagnosing melanocytic lesions compared to the histopathological results, constituting the gold standard of diagnosis.

Material and methods: One hundred eighteen melanocytic lesions were clinically evaluated via the naked eye and dermoscopic examination, using Pattern Analysis Methodology, and afterward, they were excised. The histopathological results were correlated with the findings.

Results: According to the final histopathological analysis, 63 common benign nevi, 41 dysplastic nevi, and 14 cutaneous melanomas were excised in total. Clinical examination via the naked eye showed 78.2 % sensitivity and 71.4 % specificity in identifying the clinical atypia, while dermoscopy demonstrated 89.1 % sensitivity and 93.7 % specificity.

Conclusions: The results of the present study indicate a higher sensitivity and specificity of dermoscopy in evaluating and diagnosing melanocytic lesions compared to the naked-eye examination. HIPPOKRATIA 2021, 25 (4):156-161.

Keywords: Melanocytic lesions; atypia; dermoscopy; dysplasia.

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Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1. Clinical image demonstrating a false positive diagnosis regarding a lesion in the patient’s right sole that was classified as an atypical lesion according to the ABCD rule but received the histopathological diagnosis of compound nevus.
Figure 2
Figure 2. Dermoscopic image of the same lesion as in Figure 1 illustrating the parallel ridge pattern commonly associated with acral melanoma.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

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