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Reliability and validity of a bioimpedance measurement device in the assessment of UVR damage to the skin

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Abstract

Ultraviolet radiation (UVR) is the primary cause of skin cancers. However, it is difficult to evaluate the amount of UVR absorbed into the skin retrospectively. Therefore, objective and non-invasive quantitative method would be valuable for epidemiological UVR exposure assessment. Photodamage reduces the amount of bound water in the skin, and thus, measuring the skin’s dielectric constant can provide an opportunity for assessing the cumulative UVR exposure. The purpose of the study was to assess the reliability and validity of the bioimpedance device, Moisture Meter-D. The measurements were performed on 100 subjects at three separate measurement times. A questionnaire was used to obtain information on the host factors and on the past UVR exposure. The biological samples, to determine the elastin proportion of the dermis, were collected. Some long-term as well as seasonal variations in the dielectric constants were detected. Also, a weak relationship between the dielectric constant and the UVR exposure indicators and host factors was observed. The MoistureMeter-D appears not to measure structural alterations in the skin caused by photodamage, and thus it is not a valid instrument for the assessment of photodamage, i.e., past UVR exposure.

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Abbreviations

UVR:

Ultraviolet radiation

CMM:

Cutaneous malignant melanoma

NMSC:

Non-melanoma skin cancer

SCC:

Squamous cell carcinoma

BCC:

Basal cell carcinoma

EM:

Electromagnetic

MHz:

Megahertz

s.d:

Standard deviation;

95% CI:

95% Confidence interval

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Acknowledgments

We thank medical student Pekka Leinonen from the Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland for the assistance when analyzing the proportion of elastin from the tissue samples and Dr Paula Martikainen at Department of Pathology, University of Tampere, Tampere, Finland, for her help in processing the tissue samples. We thank the Cancer Society of Finland for their financial support. The work of Katja Kojo was possible with the financial support of Doctoral Programs in Public Health. We also like to thank the personnel of Delfin Technologies Ltd, Kuopio, Finland, for their most helpful practical assistance during this study. At Delfin Technologies Ltd, we especially thank Dr Jouni Nuutinen.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. STUK, Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority, Helsinki, Finland

    Katja Kojo, Riikka Pastila & Anssi Auvinen

  2. School of Public Health, University of Tampere, 33014, Tampere, Finland

    Katja Kojo, Miia Artama & Anssi Auvinen

  3. Department of Oncology, Kuopio University Hospital, Kuopio, Finland

    Tapani Lahtinen

  4. Department of Applied Physics, University of Kuopio, Kuopio, Finland

    Tapani Lahtinen

  5. Department of Dermatology, University of Oulu, Oulu, Finland

    Aarne Oikarinen

  6. Pirkanmaa Cancer Society, Tampere, Finland

    Tiina Oivanen

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  1. Katja Kojo
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Correspondence to Katja Kojo.

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Kojo, K., Lahtinen, T., Oikarinen, A. et al. Reliability and validity of a bioimpedance measurement device in the assessment of UVR damage to the skin. Arch Dermatol Res 300, 253–261 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00403-008-0844-3

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00403-008-0844-3

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