Usefulness of video thermography in the evaluation of platelet-rich plasma effectiveness in vulvar lichen sclerosus: preliminary study

Background: Lichen sclerosus (LS) is a chronic-relapsing and potentially serious skin disease that has a preference for genital skin. Currently, there is no standardized method for assessing the effects of therapies. Objective: The objective of this preliminary study is to use video thermography (VTG) in the evaluation of vulvar lichen sclerosus (VLS) before and after platelet-rich plasma (PRP) therapy. Methods: A sample of six female patients was enrolled. Patients were subjected to PRP treatment. Patients selected for the study had been assessed at baseline (T0) and after 7 and 30 d from PRP treatment (T1 and T2, respectively). Clinical and VTG evaluation was executed in every visit. Results: The VTG examination showed at least one hypothermic area (HA) in all our patients. The average temperature measured in the vulvar and perineal region taken as a reference for each patient was found to be between 33.7 °C and 36.3 °C, with a fair difference between the patients. HAs showed thermal differences which varied between 2.2 °C and 1.2 °C. Conclusions: It is demonstrated here that PRP offers satisfactory effectiveness in treating VLS and that video thermograpy could represent a useful paraclinic method in the identification and follow-up of LS.