Abstract :
The Dermoscopy is an inexpensive in vivo and non-invasive technique that permits the visualization of morphologic features of the epidermis and papillary dermis that are not visible to the naked eye. Previously, dermoscopy had been used in differentiating malignant pigmentary disorders, but the use of dermoscopy has recently been extended to the diagnosis of non pigmentary skin disorders by defining the characteristic vasculature. Beside to traditional use, dermoscopy is more and more used in the assessment of other general dermatologic conditions, namely scalp and hair disorders (trichoscopy), nails abnormalities (onychoscopy), skin infections and infestations (entomodermoscopy) and cutaneous inflammatory diseases (inflammoscopy). Among the list of new applications of dermoscopy, the study of inflammatory dermatoses is probably the most promising topic in terms of development and usefulness, considering the large number of such disorders and the frequent problems in their differential diagnosis which the dermatologist encounters in daily clinical practice.
