[Videomicroscopy in differential diagnosis of skin tumors and secondary prevention of malignant melanoma]

Abstract

During a 12-month period, 824 pigmented skin lesions were examined, and the clinical, videomicroscopic and histological diagnoses were compared. Patients with skin lesions that were difficult to assess were recruited from the outpatient clinic of the department of dermatology within the Technical University of Munich. The study reveals that videomicroscopy as a variation of epiluminescence microscopy much improves diagnostic accuracy, especially of early malignant melanoma, but also with regard to the differentiation between melanocytic and non-melanocytic lesions, is achieved. Furthermore, patients with a high relative risk of developing malignant melanoma, such as patients with multiple naevi, can be scheduled for thorough microscopical controls. The possibility of uncomplicated photographic documentation of a large number of naevi after excision of the suspicious lesions allows valuable periodic follow-ups with macroscopical and microscopical comparison.