Consensus on melanonychia nail plate dermoscopy

Abstract

This statement, focused on melanonychia and nail plate dermoscopy, is intended to guide medical professionals working with melanonychia and to assist choosing appropriate management for melanonychia patients. The International Study Group on Melanonychia was founded in 2007 and currently has 30 members, including nail experts and dermatopathologists with special expertise in nails. The need for common definitions of nail plate dermoscopy was addressed during the Second Meeting of this Group held in February 2008. Prior to this meeting and to date (2010) there have been no evidence-based guidelines on the use of dermoscopy in the management of nail pigmentation.

Dermoscopic evaluation of melanonychia

“…To overcome these limitations and increase the accuracy of diagnosis, the International Study Group on Melanonychia published official consensus statements with over a dozen diagnostic pearls based on dermoscopic images of the nail plate and hyponychium . In 2016, the International Dermoscopy Society reported clinical and dermoscopic clues to differentiate pigmented nail bands .…”

“…16,17 To overcome these limitations and increase the accuracy of diagnosis, the International Study Group on Melanonychia published official consensus statements with over a dozen diagnostic pearls based on dermoscopic images of the nail plate and hyponychium. 18 In 2016, the International Dermoscopy Society reported clinical and dermoscopic clues to differentiate pigmented nail bands. 19 Based on their original study, melanoma cases were significantly associated with six features: (i) width of the pigmented band of more than two-thirds of the nail plate; (ii) gray and black coloration; (iii) irregularly pigmented lines; (iv) Hutchinson's and micro-Hutchinson's signs;…”

Dermoscopy in the Evaluation of Nail Disorders

“…In adulthood, the use of dermoscopy in the evaluation of nail pigmentation began in 2007, when dermoscopic criteria suggestive of benign and malignant nail melanocyte lesions were proposed [31], but it was later shown that the technique is not always reliable in the management of pigmented nail lesions [32]. The clinical ABCDEF rule for nail pigmentation [33] should always be applied with dermoscopy [22] for diagnostic accuracy.…”

A comparative study of onychomycosis and traumatic toenail onychodystrophy dermoscopic patterns

“…Except for melanonychia, [6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14] dermoscopy use in nail disorders is poorly established. However, application of this simple non-invasive tool to improve the diagnostic accuracy of OM should be explored.…”