Sequential Change of Wound Calculated by Image Analysis Using a Color Patch Method during a Secondary Intention...

Area of Science:

• Wound healing research
• Medical imaging analysis
• Dermatology and Plastic Surgery

Background:

• Accurate wound assessment is crucial for secondary intention healing (SIH).
• Current methods for analyzing wound images lack standardization and efficiency.
• Photographs are vital for tracking SIH progress.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate sequential changes in SIH across different body sites.
• To introduce and validate a novel color patch method for wound size quantification.
• To compare healing rates between facial and non-facial areas.

Main Methods:

• Retrospective review of 30 patients undergoing SIH for skin defects.
• Utilized sequential photography with a custom-designed color patch for automated size calculation.
• Analyzed data from 11 facial and 19 non-facial wound sites.

Main Results:

• The color patch method demonstrated high accuracy in calculating defect and scar sizes (error rate: -3.39% to +3.05%).
• All SIH treatments resulted in smaller scar sizes compared to initial defects (18.8%–86.1% decrease).
• Facial areas exhibited significantly faster healing and greater scar size reduction (67.05% decrease) than non-facial areas (53.29% decrease) within two weeks.

Conclusions:

• SIH is a viable treatment option for skin defect restoration.
• The novel color patch method offers accurate and efficient wound size analysis.
• Careful wound dressing during the initial two weeks is recommended for optimal SIH outcomes, particularly for non-facial sites.