Vallotton P, Thomas N
Biotech Imaging, CSIRO Mathematical and Information Sciences, North Ryde, NSW, Australia.
Skin Res Technol. 2008 Nov;14(4):493-7. doi: 10.1111/j.1600-0846.2008.00322.x.
BACKGROUND/PURPOSE: Hair loss or hair excess is a common condition. There is a growing need to quantitatively assess the success of interventions aimed at replenishing areas that lack hair or at removing hair from areas such as the back, the legs, or the arms. Non-invasive methods that do not require staining are highly desirable because the staining process itself may affect the efficacy of the treatment.
We introduce a system based on a flatbed scanner and on novel and sensitive image analysis algorithms to count the number of hairs and their individual length. Additionally, a measure of hair visibility is introduced, which allows assessing objectively the severity of the condition.
Our system is able to detect even hairs that are difficult to see to a human observer. It is robust to skin impurities or variations in the skin texture and colour. Scanner imaging ensures a sharp image over the whole field. The system analyses on the order of two images per minute, making it suitable for large clinical studies. Counts delivered by a human counter vs. the software were within 10% of each other (N=12).
Based on our results, we expect that the software will be useful to a number of researchers investigating medical and cosmetic issues involving objective assessment of pilosity. The algorithm itself may be of use for other applications.
背景/目的：脱发或多毛是一种常见病症。对于旨在补充毛发缺失区域或去除背部、腿部或手臂等部位毛发的干预措施，越来越需要对其效果进行定量评估。由于染色过程本身可能会影响治疗效果，因此非常需要不进行染色的非侵入性方法。
我们介绍一种基于平板扫描仪和新颖且灵敏的图像分析算法的系统，用于计算毛发数量及其各自的长度。此外，还引入了一种毛发可见度测量方法，可客观评估病症的严重程度。
我们的系统甚至能够检测到人类观察者难以看到的毛发。它对皮肤杂质或皮肤纹理和颜色的变化具有鲁棒性。扫描仪成像可确保整个视野图像清晰。该系统每分钟可分析约两张图像，适用于大型临床研究。人工计数与软件计数的结果相差不超过10%（N = 12）。
基于我们的结果，我们预计该软件将对许多研究涉及毛发客观评估的医学和美容问题的研究人员有用。该算法本身可能也适用于其他应用。
