A portable mirror stand for clinical facial photo documentation

In plastic surgery, patient photography is a vital component of clinical, educational, legal, and research documentation. Optimal acquisition of photographic data requires a dedicated photography studio or a three-dimensional anatomic scanner, both of which are financially impractical for most clinicians. Simplified photo standardization is proposed for use in random clinical settings by using a portable device called the Mirror Stand (MirS). This model device aims to mimic a studio environment by incorporating the basic elements of producing consistent photographs. The pilot MirS is designed for facial photography. Images of 40 random subjects were obtained using the MirS with three different cameras. Real anthropometric measurements of each subject were collected, compared with the photographic measurements, and analyzed. In this study, all three cameras produced equally reliable measurements. Actual facial measurements were comparable to the photogrammetric measurements obtained from photographs taken using the MirS. A constant formula was derived; it allowed the conversion of photographic values into real anthropometric values. The MirS produced consistent photographs with respect to the measurements. The photographs obtained could be translated reliably into their real anthropometric measurements. Therefore, the MirS can be applied in daily practice, providing an efficient alternative for obtaining a standard justifiable photograph.