Background

 
Dermatoscopy, a simple, noninvasive, diagnostic technique may be applied not only to pigmented skin lesions but also to unpigmented or lightly pigmented lesions. The lack of patterns formed by structures pigmented by melanin makes it difficult to diagnose those lesions with specificity. In the absence of melanin, which is usually so prominent that it covers all other structures, distinctive patterns formed by blood vessels can be identified and may serve as important clues to specific diagnoses. [1, 2] Currently, the classification of vascular patterns observed by dermatoscopy is difficult to understand because it is short of logic and full of terms that are not defined. We sought to develop a new classification of vessels that is logical, repeatable, easy to understand, and based on simple terminology with clear definitions.