[Structure analysis of the skin surface using computer-assisted laser profilometry. New method for the quantitative...

Up to now, it has been difficult to record the roughness of the skin and to define it satisfactorily by measuring techniques. A new method for computer-assisted structural analysis of the skin surface is introduced, which uses laser beams for measurement without contact. This measuring technique is suitable for quantitative characterization of normal skin surfaces and for pathological alterations to the skin surface. Because of the dynamic properties of the skin, it is characterized by means of silicone replicas of the skin surface. Different parameters of roughness are determined and completed by mathematical and statistical processes such as Fourier transform and an autocorrelation function. These processes are related to the digitally stored three-dimensional profile of the skin surface. The new method is presented by means of some examples characterizing a typical clinical finding of rough eczematous skin. A comparison with photographs taken with a scanning electron microscope demonstrates the quality of resolution achieved with the measuring technique.