Dermoscopic Monitoring for Treatment and Follow-Up of Actinic Keratosis With 5-Aminolaevulinic Acid Photodynamic Therapy

Objectives: To assess the usefulness of dermoscopy in monitoring the treatment response and recurrence of actinic keratosis treated with 5-aminolaevulinic acid photodynamic therapy. Methods: In total, 35 patients with 75 actinic keratosis lesions were treated with 5-aminolaevulinic acid photodynamic therapy. The patients were divided randomly into 2 groups, dermoscopic group and the control group. Sixteen patients with 35 actinic keratosis lesions were treated with dermoscopic monitoring to determine the end point of the treatment. The remaining 19 patients with 40 skin lesions served as control and treated without dermoscopic monitoring and observed with naked eyes. At 1-year follow-up, patients were examined to look for the recurrence rate of the disease. Results: In the dermoscopic group, 1 (2.85%) of 35 actinic keratosis lesions showed recurrence of disease after 6 months of treatment. The recurrence was noted with red pseudo-network and scales at the treated site, whereas in the control group, 5 (12.5%) of 40 lesions showed recurrence. Conclusions: Dermoscopy can be a useful tool for monitoring the skin lesions in patients with actinic keratosis during photodynamic therapy and follow-up.