Tape stripping
Hypermelanotic nevi are benign melanocytic lesions of black color, that are sometimes clinically suspicious for melanoma. These nevi are usually characterized by a large amount of melanin in the stratum corneum (black lamella) usually in the center of the lesion (central blotch). This renders the correct interpretation more difficult, especially when the melanin is irregularly distributed throughout the.
Tape stripping has been shown to remove the stratum corneum including superficial structures of the lesion such as black dots and blotches [1]
Tape stripping using any type of sticky tape can solve the problem by removing the black lamella and by allowing the visualization of the typical dermoscopic features of reticular nevi (regular network) [2].
- ↑ Guillod et al.: Epiluminescence videomicroscopy: black dots and brown globules revisited by stripping the stratum corneum. J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 1997;36:371-7. PMID: 9091466.
- ↑ Babino et al.: Tape stripping: A very short-term follow-up procedure for suspicious black lesions. J. Am. Acad. Dermatol. 2015;72:e151-2. PMID: 25981018. DOI.
