The Application Of 3D Scanning In Quantitative Analysis Of Scar And Assessment Of Efficacy In Scar Treatment

Background Scar has been assessed mainly by scar scales of semi-quantitative analysis for a long time.Due to the lack of objective methods to analyze the morphology and severity of scars,it's difficult to evaluate the efficacy of treatments in quantitative methods,which prevents new treatments from applications in clinical practice.Methods A portable 3D scanner with high resolution along with the scanning software VXelements 4.0 was provided by Creaform Co.(Canada).Meanwhile,the software of Geo Magic Studio 2014(Research Triangle Park,NC,USA)was also used to perform data analysis.First,we scanned different types of scars located at different anatomic regions.The 3D scan data were compared to the manually measured data to search for the correlation between them and the liability of the scanner.Next,we further investigated the correlation between morphologic parameters of scars derived from the scanner and the scores of Vancouver Scar Scale(VSS)to select potential parameters that could reflect the severity of the observed scars.We then further investigate the influence of curvature on the effect scar scanning of complex structure.Finally,we assessed the efficacy of reinforced adhesive tapes in treating small multiple keloids through the sensitive indexes.And from this assessment,we can learn the feasibility of 3D scanning in the assessment of treatment efficacy.Results The data measured by portable high-resolution 3D scanner was related to those achieved by manual measurement,the correlation coefficient was r=0.966(p<0.01),and the values were usually bigger than those of manual measurement.Ln-increasing rate,ln-averaged height,ln-surface area,the largest height,ln-largest height,increasing rate and ln-volume were related to the total score of VSS(p<0.01).Ln-area difference,ln-average height,ln-increasing rate,ln-largest height,largest height,averaged height and ln-volume were related to ln-total score of VSS(p<0.01).3D scanner can be applied to the scanning different kinds of scars,but scanning method remained to be improved for the scar at the sites with large curvature.The efficacy of reinforced adhesive tapes in treating multiple small keloids could be confirmed by the reduced averaged height,ln-averaged height and ln-increasing rate,while the bottom and surface area became bigger(p<0.01).The volume,difference of surface area,increasing rate and ln-difference of surface area did not change significantly(p>0.05).Conclusion The results measured by the portable high-resolution 3D scanner generally match the data of clinical observation.Using indexes obtained by 3D scanning,we discovered that ln-increasing rate and ln-averaged height were related to VSS total score,and thus could represent the severity of scars.In addition,3D scanner could precisely measure different kinds of scars in flat sites while the graphic processing needs to be improved in large curvature sites;Reinforced adhesive tapes help to inhibit the growth of multiple small keloids.