title: Dermoscopy of pigmented lesions of the mucosa and the mucocutaneous junction: results of a multicenter study by the International Dermoscopy Society (IDS).
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To better characterize the dermoscopic patterns of mucosal lesions in relation to the histopathologic characteristics.
  
  
  METHODS
  Retrospective and observational study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fourteen referral pigmented lesion clinics in 10 countries.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 140 pigmented mucosal lesions (126 benign lesions, 11 melanomas, 2 Bowen disease lesions, and 1 metastasis) from 92 females (66%) and 48 males (34%) were collected from October 2007 through November 2008.
  
  
  METHODS
  Scoring the dermoscopic patterns (dots, globules, or clods, circles, lines, or structureless) and colors (brown, black, blue, gray, red, purple, and white) and correlation with the histopathologic characteristics.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Based on univariate analysis and 2 diagnostic models, the presence of structureless zones inside the lesions with blue, gray, or white color (the first model) had a 100% sensitivity for melanoma and 92.9% sensitivity for any malignant lesion, and 82.2% and 83.3% specificity for benign lesions in the group with melanoma lesions and the group with malignant lesions, respectively. Based on the colors (blue, gray, or white) only (the second model), the sensitivity for the group with melanoma was 100% and for the group with any malignant lesion was 92.9%, and the specificity was 64.3% and 65.1%, respectively. Patients with malignant lesions were significantly older than patients with benign lesions (mean [SD] ages, 60.1 [22.8] years vs 43.2 [17.3] years, respectively).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The combination of blue, gray, or white color with structureless zones are the strongest indicators when differentiating between benign and malignant mucosal lesions in dermoscopy.
authors.affiliation: Private and Teaching Practice of Dermatology, Seestrasse 3a, 78464 Konstanz, Germany. a.blum@derma.de
authors.forename: Andreas
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Blum
authors.forename: Olga
authors.initials: O
authors.lastname: Simionescu
authors.forename: Giuseppe
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Argenziano
authors.forename: Ralph
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.forename: Horacio
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Cabo
authors.forename: Astrid
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Eichhorn
authors.forename: Herbert
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kirchesch
authors.forename: Josep
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Malvehy
authors.forename: Ashfaq A
authors.initials: AA
authors.lastname: Marghoob
authors.forename: Susana
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Puig
authors.forename: Fezal
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Ozdemir
authors.forename: Wilhelm
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Stolz
authors.forename: Isabelle
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Tromme
authors.forename: Ulrike
authors.initials: U
authors.lastname: Weigert
authors.forename: Ingrid H
authors.initials: IH
authors.lastname: Wolf
authors.forename: Iris
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Zalaudek
authors.forename: Harald
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kittler
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001913:Bowen's Disease / Q000175:diagnosis*; D046169:Dermoscopy / Q000379:methods*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008545:Melanoma / Q000175:diagnosis*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009508:Nevus, Pigmented / Q000175:diagnosis; D012189:Retrospective Studies; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012878:Skin Neoplasms / Q000175:diagnosis*