6533b82afe1ef96bd128b87b
RESEARCH PRODUCT
Evaluation of Erythema Severity in Dermatoscopic Images of Canine Skin: Erythema Index Assessment and Image Sampling Reliability.
Blaž CugmasDaira ViškereDaira ViškereEva ŠTrucThierry Olivrysubject
Image samplingSkin erythemamedicine.medical_specialtyErythema040301 veterinary sciencesIntraclass correlationsmartphone dermatoscopyintraclass correlation coefficientlcsh:Chemical technologyBiochemistrySpearman's rank correlation coefficientSeverity of Illness IndexAnalytical ChemistrySpecimen Handling0403 veterinary science030207 dermatology & venereal diseases03 medical and health sciences0302 clinical medicineDogsImage Interpretation Computer-Assistedmultispectral imagingMedicineerythema indexAnimalslcsh:TP1-1185Dog DiseasesElectrical and Electronic EngineeringInstrumentationReliability (statistics)SkinDermatoscopymedicine.diagnostic_testintegumentary systembusiness.industryCommunicationReproducibility of Results04 agricultural and veterinary sciencesCADESI4DermatologyAtomic and Molecular Physics and Optics3. Good healthErythemacanine atopic dermatitiserythema severityimage samplingmedicine.symptombusinessSkin lesiondisease severity scalesdescription
The regular monitoring of erythema, one of the most important skin lesions in atopic (allergic) dogs, is essential for successful anti-allergic therapy. The smartphone-based dermatoscopy enables a convenient way to acquire quality images of erythematous skin. However, the image sampling to evaluate erythema severity is still done manually, introducing result variability. In this study, we investigated the correlation between the most popular erythema indices (EIs) and dermatologists’ erythema perception, and we measured intra- and inter-rater variability of the currently-used manual image-sampling methods (ISMs). We showed that the EIBRG, based on all three RGB (red, green, and blue) channels, performed the best with an average Spearman coefficient of 0.75 and a typical absolute disagreement of less than 14% with the erythema assessed by clinicians. On the other hand, two image-sampling methods, based on either selecting specific pixels or small skin areas, performed similarly well. They achieved high intra- and inter-rater reliability with the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and Krippendorff’s alpha well above 0.90. These results indicated that smartphone-based dermatoscopy could be a convenient and precise way to evaluate skin erythema severity. However, better outlined, or even automated ISMs, are likely to improve the intra- and inter-rater reliability in severe erythematous cases.
| year | journal | country | edition | language |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021-02-01 | Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) |