Video Topics

Dermoscopy Diagnostic Algorithms

Dermoscopic diagnosis of pigmented lesions is based on the recognition of many different structures and patterns of pigmentation. These structures and patterns have been classified and defined. A consensus meeting in 1990 listed 22 different patterns and structures. Eight different variations of the pigment network alone were described. Learning twenty-two different criteria is cumbersome and confusing. Teaching that level of complexity is difficult. There have been several attempts to organize this material. Several methods to analyze pigmented lesions have been described.

The most widely used methods of classification and diagnosis are pattern analysis, the ABCD dermoscopy rule, the Menzies methods and the 7-point checklist.