Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors
<b>Background/Objectives:</b> Breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) is a chronic condition that has early diagnosis as a critical component for proper treatment. Thermography, a non-invasive imaging method, is considered a promising complementary tool for the diagnosis and monitoring o...
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MDPI AG
2024-10-01
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| author | Vanessa Maria da Silva Alves Gomes Naiany Tenório Ana Rafaela Cardozo da Silva Laura Raynelle Patriota Oliveira Ana Claúdia Souza da Silva Juliana Netto Maia Marcos Leal Brioschi Diego Dantas |
| author_facet | Vanessa Maria da Silva Alves Gomes Naiany Tenório Ana Rafaela Cardozo da Silva Laura Raynelle Patriota Oliveira Ana Claúdia Souza da Silva Juliana Netto Maia Marcos Leal Brioschi Diego Dantas |
| author_sort | Vanessa Maria da Silva Alves Gomes |
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| description | <b>Background/Objectives:</b> Breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) is a chronic condition that has early diagnosis as a critical component for proper treatment. Thermography, a non-invasive imaging method, is considered a promising complementary tool for the diagnosis and monitoring of BCRL, especially in subclinical stages. The present study aimed to evaluate the intra- and inter-examiner reproducibility of thermography for measuring the skin temperature of the upper limbs (UL) of women with and without BCRL. <b>Methods</b>: This study, conducted with women who underwent a unilateral mastectomy, assessed BCRL using indirect volumetry. Maximum, minimum, and mean skin temperatures were measured in five regions of interest (ROI) of each UL (C1, C2, C3, C4, and Cup) in four different postures. Reproducibility measures were assessed using an intraclass correlation coefficient, 95% confidence interval, and coefficient of variation. <b>Results</b>: The sample comprised 30 women; 14 were diagnosed with BCRL. A total of 120 thermograms were recorded in different postures, and 3600 ROI were analyzed in the UL with and without BRCL. The intraclass correlation coefficient of the analyses indicated intra- and inter-examiner reproducibility from good to excellent (0.82 to 1.00) for all skin temperatures evaluated (maximum, minimum, and mean). The coefficient of variation for all measures was below 10%, indicating low variability. <b>Conclusions</b>: Our findings demonstrate that thermography shows good-to-excellent reproducibility across multiple postures and regions of interest, reinforcing its potential as a non-invasive and reliable method for assessing lymphedema in breast cancer survivors. This study establishes a foundation for incorporating thermography into clinical practice for early BCRL detection, particularly in subclinical stages, thus improving patient management and outcomes. |
| format | Article |
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| issn | 2227-9059 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2024-10-01 |
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| series | Biomedicines |
| spelling | doaj-art-e6cf1de0c623447d85de8e605971c4322025-08-20T01:53:52ZengMDPI AGBiomedicines2227-90592024-10-011211246510.3390/biomedicines12112465Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer SurvivorsVanessa Maria da Silva Alves Gomes0Naiany Tenório1Ana Rafaela Cardozo da Silva2Laura Raynelle Patriota Oliveira3Ana Claúdia Souza da Silva4Juliana Netto Maia5Marcos Leal Brioschi6Diego Dantas7Departamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, BrazilMedical Thermology and Thermography Specialization, Hospital das Clínicas da Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de São Paulo, São Paulo 05508-220, BrazilDepartamento de Fisioterapia, Centro de Ciências da Saúde, Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Recife 50670-901, Brazil<b>Background/Objectives:</b> Breast cancer-related lymphedema (BCRL) is a chronic condition that has early diagnosis as a critical component for proper treatment. Thermography, a non-invasive imaging method, is considered a promising complementary tool for the diagnosis and monitoring of BCRL, especially in subclinical stages. The present study aimed to evaluate the intra- and inter-examiner reproducibility of thermography for measuring the skin temperature of the upper limbs (UL) of women with and without BCRL. <b>Methods</b>: This study, conducted with women who underwent a unilateral mastectomy, assessed BCRL using indirect volumetry. Maximum, minimum, and mean skin temperatures were measured in five regions of interest (ROI) of each UL (C1, C2, C3, C4, and Cup) in four different postures. Reproducibility measures were assessed using an intraclass correlation coefficient, 95% confidence interval, and coefficient of variation. <b>Results</b>: The sample comprised 30 women; 14 were diagnosed with BCRL. A total of 120 thermograms were recorded in different postures, and 3600 ROI were analyzed in the UL with and without BRCL. The intraclass correlation coefficient of the analyses indicated intra- and inter-examiner reproducibility from good to excellent (0.82 to 1.00) for all skin temperatures evaluated (maximum, minimum, and mean). The coefficient of variation for all measures was below 10%, indicating low variability. <b>Conclusions</b>: Our findings demonstrate that thermography shows good-to-excellent reproducibility across multiple postures and regions of interest, reinforcing its potential as a non-invasive and reliable method for assessing lymphedema in breast cancer survivors. This study establishes a foundation for incorporating thermography into clinical practice for early BCRL detection, particularly in subclinical stages, thus improving patient management and outcomes.https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/12/11/2465thermographylymphedemabreast cancer survivorsskin temperaturereproducibility |
| spellingShingle | Vanessa Maria da Silva Alves Gomes Naiany Tenório Ana Rafaela Cardozo da Silva Laura Raynelle Patriota Oliveira Ana Claúdia Souza da Silva Juliana Netto Maia Marcos Leal Brioschi Diego Dantas Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors Biomedicines thermography lymphedema breast cancer survivors skin temperature reproducibility |
| title | Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors |
| title_full | Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors |
| title_fullStr | Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors |
| title_full_unstemmed | Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors |
| title_short | Reproducibility of Thermography for Measuring Skin Temperature of Upper Limbs in Breast Cancer Survivors |
| title_sort | reproducibility of thermography for measuring skin temperature of upper limbs in breast cancer survivors |
| topic | thermography lymphedema breast cancer survivors skin temperature reproducibility |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2227-9059/12/11/2465 |
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