Dermatological image search engines on the Internet: do they work?
BACKGROUND
Atlases on CD-ROM first substituted the use of paediatric dermatology atlases printed on paper. This permitted a faster search and a practical comparison of differential diagnoses. The third step in the evolution of clinical atlases was the onset of the online atlas. Many doctors now use the Internet image search engines to obtain clinical images directly.


OBJECTIVE
The aim of this study was to test the reliability of the image search engines compared to the online atlases.


METHODS
We tested seven Internet image search engines with three paediatric dermatology diseases.


RESULTS
In general, the service offered by the search engines is good, and continues to be free of charge. The coincidence between what we searched for and what we found was generally excellent, and contained no advertisements. Most Internet search engines provided similar results but some were more user friendly than others. It is not necessary to repeat the same research with Picsearch, Lycos and MSN, as the response would be the same; there is a possibility that they might share software.


CONCLUSIONS
Image search engines are a useful, free and precise method to obtain paediatric dermatology images for teaching purposes. There is still the matter of copyright to be resolved. What are the legal uses of these 'free' images? How do we define 'teaching purposes'? New watermark methods and encrypted electronic signatures might solve these problems and answer these questions.
Cutrone
M
M
Paediatrics Department, Neonatal Unit, Ospedale Umberto I, Mestre, Venezia, Italy.
Grimalt
R
R
D003880:Dermatology; D003937:Diagnosis, Differential; D006801:Humans; D020407:Internet; D008488:Medical Illustration; D010372:Pediatrics; D010781:Photography