Three-dimensional imaging for volume measurement of hypertrophic and keloid scars, reliability of a previously validated simplified technique in clinical setting.

Background: Evidence behind many of the current treatments in hypertrophic and keloid scars remains limited. Current objective methods to assess efficacy and provide follow-up can be complex and are not easily applied in clinical setting. The aim of this study was to assess reliability of a recently validated simplified technique for volume measurement in clinical practice.

Methods: Volume measurement of 28 hypertrophic and keloid scars was conducted in 22 consecutive patients, using a three-dimensional stereophotogrammetry. Intra- and inter-rater reliability was assessed by the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) and the coefficient of variation (CV). The measurement error was expressed as limits of agreement (LoA).

Results: The simplified method for three-dimensional volume measurement showed good intra-rater reliability with an ICC of 0.997 and a CV of 7.3%, and a good inter-rater reliability with an ICC of 0.999 and a CV of 5.7%. The plot of the differences and LoA showed near-perfect agreement between observers.

Conclusions: Objective evaluation of scar volume using the simplified three-dimensional measurement technique may complement subjective scoring and improve the ability to quantitatively compare the response to therapeutic methods.