Clinical and dermoscopic changes in common melanocytic nevi in school children: the Framingham school nevus study. Academic Article uri icon

Overview

abstract

  • BACKGROUND: Nevi are potential precursors of malignant melanoma and are important risk factors for the development of the disease. Childhood may be a critical time for the formation and evolution of nevi. OBJECTIVES: To document the development of new nevi and to document the clinical and dermoscopic changes in index nevi in school children during a 1-year follow-up. METHODS: Digital photographs and dermoscopic images of the back of subjects were compared at baseline and 1-year follow-up to assess changes in nevi counts and in clinical and dermoscopic features of index nevi. RESULTS: Overall participation rate was 81% (42/52). 56.4% of study participants were found to have an increased number of nevi at 1-year follow-up. All nevi were small and clinically insignificant. Fifty percent of study participants were found to have dermoscopic changes in their index nevi at 1-year follow-up. Eighty-five percent of these changes were classified as subtle and 15.0% as obvious. CONCLUSIONS: A significant portion of students developed new nevi over the course of 1 year. Most index nevi remained stable in pattern and structure. Benign dermoscopic changes occurred in 50.0% of index nevi. However, none of the dermoscopically changed nevi revealed any major changes and the overall nevus pattern remained unchanged. The relevance of these changes is uncertain and further follow-up may elucidate their significance.

publication date

  • January 1, 2005

Research

keywords

  • Nevus, Pigmented
  • Skin Neoplasms

Identity

Scopus Document Identifier

  • 26244467742

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

  • 10.1159/000087017

PubMed ID

  • 16205068

Additional Document Info

volume

  • 211

issue

  • 3