Currents: Derm 5.0: Tech Innovations

UV Index Today Seeks to Reduce Skin Cancer Rates with Web Technology

UV Index Today launched its free UV forecasting service to help people track the sun’s ultraviolet radiation.

“Over three million people are diagnosed with skin cancer each year and many of these cases could have been prevented with proper sun protection,” says Stephen Sandecki, Principal at UV Index Today, in a news release. “We are helping educate people on the dangers of ultraviolet radiation from the sun and what times exposure should be limited or avoided all together.”

The UV Index Today website provides free forecasts for more than 40,000 cities in the United States. Forecasts include the real-time UV index, the current day’s hourly UV index and the hourly forecast for the next five days. “Everyone loves the outdoors, but many people don’t realize the dangers of unprotected sun exposure,” Mr. Sandecki adds. “The only way we’re going to reduce skin cancer rates is through education of the dangers of ultraviolet radiation exposure.”

The company says it is in the early stages of building out educational resources for people to learn about ultraviolet radiation, the UV index, and UV protection methods. In mid-2022 UV Index Today plans to expand their forecasting to other countries in North America, with the goal of full global coverage by mid-2023.

Miiskin Adds AI-Based Face Tracking; First Skin Health App to Manage Skin Conditions for the Full Body

Miiskin, a digital health platform helping more than 650,000 people worldwide routinely monitor their skin, launched AI-assisted face-tracking. This feature allows users, alongside their dermatologists, to manage and follow the evolution and treatment of skin conditions affecting their faces, such as acne and rosacea, as well as receding hair.

The potential impact on facial skin conditions could be substantial, the company says. Acne is the most common skin condition in the US, affecting up to 50 million Americans annually. More than four million people receive Botox or similar treatments annually. As the area of the skin that’s most exposed to UV rays and environmental elements, the face is the most common site of skin sensitivity and is highly prone to skin damage. Basal cell carcinoma, the most common form of skin cancer, usually occurs on the head, ears, nose, and neck.

With the Miiskin app, users capture consistent multi-angle images of their faces to follow the progress of skin conditions and treatments that they are working with a dermatologist to address. The images, securely stored on the Miiskin app, can be used to track the progression of skin conditions and how they visually improve with treatment.

This feature marks a significant milestone for Miiskin as the app will help users monitor and manage skin conditions on the face. Miiskin has been at the forefront of machine learning and computer vision in patient skin self-examinations, and Face Tracking joins a suite of features that solve challenges with skin health tracking. For example, the app’s popular Automatic Skin Imaging tool privately and automatically takes full-body photos of skin, allowing for skin conditions such as eczema and psoriasis to be better managed.

Miiskin was initially launched for the fight against skin cancer; Miiskin allows users to take photographs of moles over time and compare them to help identify changes. In addition, wide area skin photos compared over time allow for the identification of new marks or moles appearing on the skin. Changes to existing moles or the appearance of new marks or moles can be an early warning sign of skin cancer, and so helping people identify such changes and encouraging them to seek early help from a dermatologist is important. Lastly, Miiskin’s Mole Sizing features help measure moles and compare size over time, simplifying the process and improving accuracy of the self-exam process. Skin cancer will remain a key application for the Miiskin app.

While Miiskin is available on iOS and Android, the new Face Tracking feature is rolling out to iOS users first, compatible with iOS11 and above. Face Tracking is available to Miiskin Premium and Miiskin PRO (for dermatologists/providers) users.

Global Teledermatology Market to Surpass $32 Million by 2028

According to Coherent Market Insights, the global teledermatology market is estimated to be valued at $7,374.5 million in 2021 and is expected to exhibit a CAGR of 23.5 percent over the forecast period (2021-2028).

Key trends in the market include increasing incidence of dermatological conditions, increasing approval of novel products, and increasing collaborations and acquisitions among key players. These key trends are expected to aid in growth of global teledermatology market.

According to an article published in Clinical and Experimental Allergy Journal in November 2020, on the basis of epidemiological data collected from 2009 to 2018 in England it is estimated that the incidence of eczema, a chronic skin condition is around 15.0 per 100 people for infants younger than one year and 0.35 per 100 people for adults falling in the age group 40-49 years.

In addition, increasing approvals of novel products is expected to drive the market growth over the forecast period. For instance, in May 2020, DermTech, a California based molecular diagnostic company, launched telemedicine service for the use of its Pigmented Lesion Assay test by patients and physicians remotely at the comfort of their home. Pigmented Lesion Assay test is a non-invasive, adhesive patch test used for early detection of melanoma, a deadly and aggressive form of skin cancer.

According to the market report, key players operating in the global teledermatology market are focusing on adoption of inorganic growth strategies such as acquisitions, mergers, partnerships, and collaborations, in order to expand their market presence in the global market. For instance, in March 2019, 3Derm, a Boston-based skin imaging and diagnostic solution provider and Draper Inc., Indiana-based manufacturer and distributor of electronics announced collaboration to develop artificial intelligence based automated capabilities for skin imaging systems manufactured by 3Derm to be used for teledermatology.

AAD Calls on Members to Educate Public About Importance of Choosing a Dermatologist

The American Academy of Dermatology (AAD) is calling on dermatologists to join thousands of other AAD members on social media to educate the public about the importance of choosing a dermatologist for skin health care. Using #chooseadermatologist, the AAD campaign aims to highlight the education, training, and expertise of the specialty. Campaign resources and more information on how to participate can be found on the AAD’s website: aad.org.