Abstract
Ultrasound imaging has been increasingly used in dermatologic research over the past four decades. This paper aims to review its use as a disease severity and treatment efficacy assessment tool, with emphasis on the past five years. Quantitative parameters such as skin thickness, overall echogenicity, echogenicity distribution, dermal–subcutaneous interface length or area are used. The authors review skin aging, cellulite, striae, fillers, scleroderma, hypertrophic scar, wounds and psoriasis studies, and discuss correlation between sonographic findings and clinical assessment and/or validated scores. Data are still insufficient to support ultrasound imaging use as an unique efficacy assessment method in a trial, but favor that it is a valuable adjuvant assessment tool that brings objectiveness to subjective clinical assessment. Further studies and technology improvement will expand its applications in dermatology.
Financial & competing interests disclosure
The authors have no relevant affiliations or financial involvement with any organization or entity with a financial interest in or financial conflict with the subject matter or materials discussed in the manuscript. This includes employment, consultancies, honoraria, stock ownership or options, expert testimony, grants or patents received or pending or royalties.
No writing assistance was utilized in the production of this manuscript.
Key issues
• A range of sonographic parameters such as skin layers thickness, overall echogenicity, echogenicity distribution, dermal–subcutaneous interface length or area may be used to evaluate different skin conditions.
• The ultrasound units available differ in their transducer architecture, ultrasound frequency, depth of penetration and system resolution. Those characteristics must be considered when choosing the best technology to be employed in a study and should be always written in the ‘materials and method’ section.
• The use of ultrasound does not preclude the need for other assessment tools in most dermatologic fields and the available data so far supports its use mainly as an adjuvant method.