Line-field confocal optical coherence tomography of lentigo maligna with horizontal and vertical histopathologic correlations

Lentigo maligna (LM) is a subtype of in situ melanoma that classically presents in elderly patients as a slowly growing lesion on sun-exposed areas that may evolve to invasive melanoma. Line-field confocal optical coherence tomography (LC-OCT) is a new non-invasive technique for a real-time, vertical, and horizontal skin imaging with high resolution close to conventional histopathology. We present the LC-OCT features of an LM of the nose in a 49-year-old white man along with their horizontal and vertical histopathological correlations. LC-OCT was able to detect in vivo, in both horizontal and vertical imaging, the main microscopic features typical of LM by showing, in the epidermis and around the hair follicles, the presence of large, bright roundish, or dendritic atypical cells, with evident nuclei, corresponding to atypical melanocytes with a tendency toward folliculotropism. A strong correspondence between LC-OCT images and vertical and horizontal histopathological sections was observed. Our study, although related to a single case, is indicative of the great potential of LC-OCT to improve the non-invasive diagnosis of LM.

Automated summary

Lentigo maligna is a subtype of melanoma that typically affects elderly patients and may progress into invasive melanoma. Line-field confocal optical coherence tomography (LC-OCT) is a promising non-invasive technique for real-time skin imaging, showing high-resolution features of LM which correlate strongly with histopathological findings. This study demonstrates the potential of LC-OCT to enhance the non-invasive diagnosis of LM.