Psoriatic lesion regression - thermographic evaluation

Abstract

Psoriasis vulgaris is a chronic inflammatory skin disease characterized by hyperkeratosis, dermal inflammatory infiltrate and increased angiogenesis. The aim of the present study was to assess usefulness of thermography in psoriatic lesion regression. Ten in-patients with psoriasis vulgaris were included in the study. ThermaCam INFRAMETRICS 290E thermocamera with temperature resolution of 0.1 oC was employed. Both visual and thermal images, derived from four body regions i.e. chest, back, upper and lower limbs of lesional and lesion-free areas were recorded and analyzed. A significant decrease in temperature measurement was observed along with efficient treatment both over skin lesions and lesion-free areas. There was also a significant decrease in erythema severity in all the examined areas. A negative correlation was noted between temperature and desquamation on the chest and between temperature and infiltration on the back. It is conceivable to speculate that temperature measurement could serve as a marker of disease remission. What is more, lesion-free skin in psoriatic patients seems to be somewhat involved in the pathological process in psoriasis suggesting that it is "prepared" for lesion progression.