title: Chromametric quantification of pigmentary changes in the solar lentigo after sunlight exposure.
abstract: The purpose of this study is to compare by chromametric analysis the changes seen in normal skin and solar lentigos after exposure to sunlight. The color measurements were made with a Minolta CR200 chromameter and expressed in the L*a*b* system, which allows a color to be quantified according to 3 axes: white-black (L*), red-green (a*) and yellow-blue (b*). In order to better assess the sensitivity of physiological mechanisms involved in this pigmentation, we chose the weakest conditions of sunlight: the first series of measurements were made at the end of the winter (March) on areas rarely exposed for several months, and the second measurement was made 2 months later before the first intense summer solar exposure. Solar lentigos underwent a significant change in pigmentation, with a darkening of these lesions and an increase in the red and yellow color components. The pigmentation of healthy skin adjacent to these lentigos remained unchanged.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire d'Explorations Cutanees, Hôpital Saint Louis, Paris, France.
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Adhoute
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Grossman
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Cordier
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Soler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003116:Color; D003124:Colorimetry; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007911:Lentigo / Q000473:pathology*; D012867:Skin / Q000473:pathology* / Q000528:radiation effects*; D012880:Skin Pigmentation / Q000528:radiation effects*; D013472:Sunlight; D013997:Time Factors