[Measurement of the wound cavity area by means of PC based planimetry. The method and observer variations]

A method for wound area measurement is presented. A wound cavity was cut in a chine of pork. A thin PVC plastic film was applied closely to the entire wound cavity surface and a line was drawn close to the cutaneous border with a marker pen. The film was then placed on a system of coordinates and coordinates were determined and entered into a PC-programme which calculated the area. No significant intra-or inter-observer variation appeared on analyses of variance between five observers each of whom performed three consecutive measurements (p > 0.2). Thus, employment of the method for clinical purposes seems feasible.