Principles of Dermoscopy and Dermoscopic Equipment

Dermatoscopy, also known as dermoscopy, uses a handheld microscope called a dermatoscope that is equipped with a magnification lens and a light source. In order to effectively utilize a dermatoscope, every clinician should understand the optical principles of the device. Furthermore, familiarity with both nonpolarized dermoscopy and polarized dermoscopy is crucial to understanding pertinent applications of each modality in the evaluation of pigmented and nonpigmented skin lesions. Many clinicians are inclined to document the dermoscopic appearance of lesions by capturing an image of the lesion with a camera. Fortunately, adapters are available for most handheld dermoscopes that permit coupling of the dermatoscope to the camera. The dermoscopic image quality acquired via the camera on a mobile phone device is on a par with those taken via more traditional methods. Finally, many of the newer total body digital systems afford the acquisition of dermoscopy and the ability to perform serial dermoscopy and link the images to the clinical lesion.