How Does Skin Tone Affect Quantitative Photoacoustic Imaging

Status

UNKNOWN

Phases

Unknown

Study type

Observational

Source

ClinicalTrials.gov

Registry ID

NCT05554523

Acronym

PAISKINTONE

Enrollment

Registered

2022-09-26

Start date

2022-10-01

Completion date

2023-10-15

Last updated

2022-09-26

For informational purposes only — not medical advice. Sourced from public registries and may not reflect the latest updates. Terms

Conditions

Vitiligo, Skin Abnormalities

Brief summary

Photoacoustic imaging (PAI) is an emerging method which combines light and ultrasound to assess the blood content and oxygenation of the body. Light is absorbed by the blood, leading to the generation of ultrasound, from which the levels of oxygen can be derived. This high sensitivity to blood has seen it applied in multiple clinical trials for the assessment of a number of conditions including breast cancer assessment. However, the accuracy of the measurements and image quality is known to decrease as you look deeper into the body because light intensity decreases. Melanin in the skin is known to absorb light very strongly and so there is considerable concern that this may bias measurements made in people with darker skin tones compared to those with lighter skin tones. In this pilot study, we intend to recruit volunteers with a wide range of skin tones and vitiligo. We will scan a number of blood vessels and muscles using PAI and evaluate the photoacoustic measurements of blood content and oxygenation to identify, and ultimately correct for, biases in advance of further clinical studies.

Interventions

DEVICEPhotoacoustic imaging

Photoacoustic imaging

Study design

Observational model

COHORT

Time perspective

CROSS_SECTIONAL

Eligibility

Sex/Gender

ALL

Age

20 Years to 70 Years

Healthy volunteers

Yes

Inclusion criteria

1. Voluntary adult non-vulnerable participants between the age of 20 to 70. 2. Can understand the Information sheet and give informed consent in English. 3. Normal or Overweight BMI (18.5 to 29.9)

Exclusion criteria

1. No participants who cannot give informed consent. 2. No tattoos or scarring of the regions to be imaged. 3. No pulmonary sleep disorder, or active respiratory disorders that may affect the blood oxygenation levels.

Design outcomes

Primary

Measure	Time frame	Description
Quantitative photoacoustic imaging	1 year	Identify biases in quantitative photoacoustic imaging when scanning people with different Fitzpatrick skin tones and Vitiligo.

Contacts

Primary ContactSarah Bohndiek

seb53@cam.ac.uk+44 (0) 1223 337267

Outcome results

None listed

Source: ClinicalTrials.gov · Data processed: Feb 4, 2026