[Conversion from a tridimensional surface to a plane for measuring expanded skin area with computer-aided technique].
OBJECTIVE
To seek a reliable and practical method to measure the expanded skin area.


METHODS
In our technique, the three-dimensional surface overlaid with the expanded skin was converted to a flat one through a special surface molding. This irregular plane area was scanned digitally to the computer and measured by means of counting its total pixels. With the areas of the underlying base and the defect measured in the same way, we could determine whether the extra tissue after expansion was sufficient for clinical repair at any stage of expansion.


RESULTS
The deviation of this protocol was less than 3 percent at most in our preliminary reliability demonstration.


CONCLUSIONS
This protocol can be used to estimate the expanded skin area in the clinical and experimental applications.
Plastic Surgery Hospital, Chinese Academy of Medical Sciences, Beijing 100041.
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H
Hu
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Sun
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Liu
D000328:Adult; D002921:Cicatrix / Q000601:surgery*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; D008297:Male; D012535:Scalp / Q000293:injuries* / Q000601:surgery; D016038:Skin Transplantation; D015626:Tissue Expansion / Q000379:methods*