Previously submitted to: JMIR Dermatology (no longer under consideration since Jul 25, 2022)
Date Submitted: Aug 3, 2021
Warning: This is an author submission that is not peer-reviewed or edited. Preprints - unless they show as "accepted" - should not be relied on to guide clinical practice or health-related behavior and should not be reported in news media as established information.
Accuracy of Automated Smartphone Applications for Detection of Melanomas in Adult Pigmented Lesions: A Systematic Review
ABSTRACT
Background:
Automated smartphone applications are increasingly being developed to provide an immediate risk assessment of lesions. However, the accuracy of these smartphone applications are not well known.
Objective:
To systematically review and evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of automated smartphone applications in detecting melanoma in adults with pigmented lesions.
Methods:
We systematically searched for articles which evaluated automated smartphone applications for detecting melanomas in MEDLINE and Embase. Articles were included if they used smartphone applications with automated analysis for detecting melanomas and were compared to benign lesions that were confirmed through histopathological examination or expert opinion.
Results:
12 automated smartphone conditions examined a total of 6635 lesions, comprising 269 melanomas. Sensitivities ranged from 7% (95% CI 2-16%) to 97% (95% CI 85-100%) and specificities from 27% (95% CI: 6-61%) to 100% (95% CI: 78-100%). However, none of these conditions were as accurate as the diagnostic evaluation by one dermatologist in one of the studies.
Conclusions:
We do not recommend automated smartphone applications for detecting melanomas. In addition, research is needed on the impact of false interpretations from smartphone applications on patients with skin concerns.
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