Dermoscopy

A dermoscopy is the safe and non-traumatic method of diagnosing the skin disease. It helps assessing the degree of danger of moles and other cutaneous neoplasms, determining whether they are benign or malignant.

WHEN IS DERMOSCOPY NEEDED?

The urgent performance of dermoscopy is needed if you find changes of the mole appearance:

• asymmetry or uneven edges;
• change of form, color, size;
• uneven color of different areas of one mole;
• pain, burning or itching of moles;
• loss of hair and bleeding from the mole; 
• appearance of fissures or ulcers on the mole;
• growth of the mole in form of “seeding” and “satellites” near the main focus;
• in case of traumas or mechanical injuries of the mole.

The following people, who are in risk group, also need the dermoscopy:

• who have relatives with melanoma and other skin cancers;
• with the moles, located in places of permanent mechanical impact (neck, footsteps, armpits, waist);
• with large number of moles on the body (more than 50).

The dermoscopy is obligatory in case of appearance of any skin neoplasms, actively growing and rapidly changing their form and color.

HOW IS DERMOSCOPY PERFORMED?

The dermatoscope is the special device, which allows “looking into” the horny layer of skin through a tenfold enhancement and polarization filters. Such examination allows determining whether this mole is dangerous or not. If necessary, the dermatoscope is fitted with photocamera, which allows saving the image so that during the next visit to a doctor, he can assess the dynamics of neoplasm development.

The Dermatology Department of Oxford Medical Kyiv uses LED dermatoscope Heine Delta 20 Plus from the global leading manufacturer of diagnostic optics.

Advantages of dermoscopy:

• safeness – the examination does not anyhow affect the organism;
• convenience – it does not require any preparation; on the contrary, the skin should not be anyhow treated before the examination;
• quickness – the examination of neoplasm takes several minutes.