Aim of the study: Cosmetic outcome of surgical treatment in the facial region is influenced by the appearance of the scar. The purpose of this investigation was to evaluate the objectivity and validity of various methods for the assessment of scars.
Material and methods: 45 patients undergoing facial surgery were examined three months after surgery. Three maxillofacial surgeons evaluated the wounds in a blinded manner using a visual analog scale (VAS). The patients also used the VAS for evaluation of their own scar. The surface of the scars was also measured by optical profilometry. Finally, the colour of the scars was analysed using both the RGB colour model and the HSV colour model.
Results: Interestingly, there was no significant correlation between the values of R (red) as assessed by the three surgeons. However, there was a very strong correlation between the values of H (hue) as assessed by the three raters. The appearance of the surface was more important in the patients' evaluation than in the raters' assessment.
Conclusion: The hue of a scar as measured in terms of the H value in the HSV colour model is an objective and reliable measure for assessing the cosmetic outcome of facial surgery.