Evaluation tool and evaluation method using evaluation tool

Abstract

To provide an evaluation tool capable of using only enlarged pores as subjects of evaluation and providing a clear standard in visual evaluation of pore size.SOLUTION: An evaluation tool X includes a display part 1 that can display a plurality of skin photographs 2 including pores of cases of the same type, each having a different degree of pore enlargement, in association with an index 3 indicating a degree of pore enlargement, and arranged in ascending or descending order of the degree. Preferably, the photograph 2 has a predetermined shape with a representative length of 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less when the skin is projected onto an imaging range.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an evaluation tool capable of presenting an objective index of pores when simply and accurately evaluating the degree of enlargement of pores in human skin, and a method for evaluating the degree of enlargement of pores. [Background technology]

[0002] The effectiveness of treatments aimed at reducing the enlargement of skin pores is generally evaluated by visual inspection by a specialist, for example, by visually checking the changes in pores caused by the treatment using photographs of the patient's skin. [Prior art documents] [Non-patent literature]

[0003] [Non-Patent Document 1] Skin Research and Technology (US),2014,Vol. 20,p.429-434 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] Non-Patent Document 1 refers to an evaluation method in which the skin surface of the patient is visually evaluated, and an evaluation method in which the area of ​​the pores is measured by image analysis of an image of the skin surface of the patient, and shows that there is a certain correlation between the two. However, in this verification, pores other than simply enlarged pores, such as blackened pores and clogged pores, are also included in the evaluation target, which reduces accuracy, and there is a problem that it is not expected to clearly track changes in the degree of enlargement of the patient's pores.

[0005] Furthermore, in the above verification, a seven-level integer value was assigned as an identifier to the photographed pores, but no comparison target or standard was provided for the evaluated images.

[0006] In view of the above-mentioned problems, an object of the present invention is to provide an evaluation tool that can evaluate only enlarged pores and can provide a clear standard for visually evaluating skin. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The present invention, which solves the above problem, is an evaluation tool that has a display unit that can display multiple photographs of skin containing pores from the same type of case, each with different degrees of pore enlargement, in order of increasing or decreasing degree of enlargement, corresponding to an index indicating the degree of enlargement of the pores. This configuration allows only enlarged pores to be evaluated, and provides a clear standard for visually evaluating the skin.

[0008] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the photograph has a predetermined shape with a representative length of 5 mm to 20 mm when the skin is projected onto an imaging range. With this configuration, an evaluation tool can be configured with evaluation criteria that extracts only enlarged pores, regardless of the type of pores contained in the area of ​​the photograph.

[0009] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the photograph has a rectangular shape with a side length of 5 mm to 20 mm when the skin is projected onto the imaging range. This configuration allows the evaluation tool to be configured with photographs that are easier to see and handle.

[0010] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the index includes a numerical value and an evaluation term including a predetermined word. With this configuration, it is possible to set detailed evaluation criteria related to the size of pores.

[0011] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the evaluation method for pore enlargement involves comparing and matching the evaluation area on the subject's skin with the photograph included in the evaluation tool to identify the photograph that most closely resembles the evaluation area, and specifying the index associated with the identified photograph as the evaluation value of the evaluation area. With this configuration, only enlarged pores can be evaluated, and the skin can be visually evaluated using clear criteria.

[0012] In a preferred embodiment of the present invention, when there are two photographs that most closely resemble the evaluation site, the median value of the indices corresponding to the two photographs is specified as the evaluation value. This configuration allows for detailed evaluation of the enlargement of more pores. [Effects of the Invention]

[0013] The present invention, which solves the above-mentioned problems, provides an evaluation tool that can evaluate only dilated pores and can provide a clear standard for visually evaluating skin. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0014] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an evaluation tool according to an embodiment of the present invention, including photographs shown in Examples. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is an explanatory diagram of a photograph of skin showing pores, displayed on the display unit. [Figure 3] 1 is a scatter plot showing the correlation between the index of the evaluation tool of the present invention given in the examples and the area of ​​pores determined by replica analysis. [Figure 4] 1 is a graph showing the evaluation results of the pore improving effect using the evaluation tool of the present invention provided in the examples. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0015] <Evaluation tools> The present invention is an evaluation tool having a display unit that can display multiple photographs of skin including pores from the same type of case, each with a different degree of pore enlargement, in order of increasing or decreasing degree of enlargement, in correspondence with an index indicating the degree of enlargement of the pores. The evaluation tool may be any tool capable of displaying a photograph on a display section described below, and may be, for example, a flat object such as paper or a plastic plate, or an electronic device with a display device such as a tablet terminal.

[0016] (Display) The display unit may be any device capable of displaying a sample image, such as a paper surface, a plastic surface, or a display device. Among these, a display device is particularly preferred, as this provides an improved visibility by providing a display that closely resembles the appearance of pores on the surface of actual skin.

[0017] (photograph) The evaluation tool of the present invention displays a plurality of skin photographs on the display unit. The photographs show skin including pores from the same case with different degrees of enlargement of the pores, and one case in which no pores were visible. Here, the pores of the same type refer to pores that have been determined to be of the same type by a dermatologist, and preferably pores that are similar in size and shape. This allows for a more accurate visual assessment of the degree of enlargement of actual skin pores.

[0018] Here, the state of pores includes blackened pores and clogged pores, but in the present invention, since the main purpose is to evaluate the state of enlarged pores, blackened pores and clogged pores are not included in the evaluation target in principle. However, for the purpose of evaluating blackened pores and clogged pores separately from the state of enlarged pores, grades of the state of these pores may be created in the same manner as described above.

[0019] Image analysis can be used to evaluate the degree of pore enlargement, but in that case it is necessary to distinguish the aforementioned blackened pores and clogged pores from simply enlarged pores. Because it is difficult to make this distinction completely without error, a more accurate evaluation can be obtained by using visual evaluation.

[0020] As will be described in detail in the example, a plurality of dermatologists equally set indexes according to the degree of pore enlargement for a plurality of photographs arranged in order of the degree of pore enlargement, and measure the enlargement of each pore by replica analysis, and as a result, it is shown that there is a correlation between each index and the replica analysis result.Furthermore, it is shown that the index score relating to the degree of pore enlargement by the evaluation tool made by using the above-mentioned method can evaluate the pores before and after the cosmetic treatment that has been reported to have the effect of improving pores, and can capture the change. That is, in the present invention, it is preferable that the multiple photographs be selected after confirming that they can be equally sorted by multiple dermatologists in order of the degree of enlargement of the pores contained therein, and that they can preferably be associated with quantitative indicators. Furthermore, by using an evaluation tool displaying a photograph selected by the above method, the degree of pore enlargement can be evaluated more accurately even by visual evaluation.

[0021] (index) The evaluation tool of the present invention displays, on the display unit, the photograph and an index indicating the degree of enlargement of the pores contained in the photograph.

[0022] The index may be defined qualitatively or quantitatively depending on the degree of enlargement of the pores to be evaluated, and either one of them may be used, or both may be used in combination. Examples of the qualitative indicators include the size or smallness of pore enlargement, and the degree of prominence or inconspicuousness, and these may be expressed using characters, symbols, numbers, alphabets, figures, pictures, etc. Examples of the quantitative index include a numerical value representing the volume of the pore portion in a replica modeled by taking a mold of the pore, or the area of ​​the enlarged portion of the pore in the replica. These numerical values ​​may be further converted into a numerical value, a character string, or a symbol indicating a grade. More preferably, the index is quantitative, and particularly preferably, it is a numerical value that directly or indirectly represents the area of ​​the enlarged pores.

[0023] The indicator may be a combination of the qualitative indicator and a quantitative indicator. For example, a numerical value representing the area of ​​the dilated portion of the pore, or a numerical value indirectly representing the numerical value, and a character string representing the degree of dilation of the pore may be displayed together.

[0024] <Embodiment> Hereinafter, an evaluation tool X and an evaluation method Y according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The description will be made in detail in the order of the configuration of the embodiment, the method of implementation, and other examples. The following embodiments are merely examples of the present invention, and the present invention is not limited to the following embodiments.

[0025] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an evaluation tool X according to this embodiment. The evaluation tool X in this embodiment is a tablet terminal. As shown in Fig. 1, the evaluation tool X of the present invention includes a display unit 1. The display unit 1 is the display device of the tablet terminal. The evaluation tool of this embodiment is primarily used to evaluate the degree of enlargement of pores.

[0026] The display unit 1 displays a plurality of photographs 2 of skin with different degrees of enlargement of pores. The number of types of photographs 2 displayed on the display unit 1 is preferably three or more, more preferably five or more, and even more preferably seven or more. Here, the number of photographs of skin containing pores with different degrees of dilation is expressed as a "type" using a numeral. The number may also include photographs of skin in which dilation of pores is not visible, i.e., photographs in which dilation of pores is not expressed. By taking more than the above number of photographs, the difference between adjacent indices becomes smaller, allowing for a more accurate evaluation of the degree of pore enlargement.

[0027] When displaying multiple photos 2, the display unit 1 may display the photos 2 in a single horizontal or vertical row. Also, if there are a large number of photos 2, the size of the display unit 1 is likely to be limited, but in this case the photos 2 may be displayed in multiple rows. For example, two or three rows may be used.

[0028] In this embodiment, seven types of photographs 2 are displayed. The pores in each photograph 2 have different degrees of dilation, and it is preferable that the difference in pore dilation between adjacent photographs 2 is uniform.

[0029] The display unit 1 may display the seven types of skin photographs in order of increasing pore enlargement, or in order of increasing pore enlargement.

[0030] In this embodiment, when the photographs 2 are displayed in multiple columns as described above, the same photograph 2 may be displayed in multiple locations. For example, the photograph at the right end of the first column and the photograph at the left end of the second column may be the same. By displaying the same photograph 2 at the ends of each column, upper and lower, comparisons can be placed on either side of each photograph 2, making it easy to compare the degree of pore enlargement.

[0031] Furthermore, the display unit 1 displays an index 3 indicating the degree of pore enlargement, particularly a numerical value 31, and an evaluation term 32 in association with the photograph 2.

[0032] 1, the difference in the degree of pore enlargement between adjacent photographs 2 is approximately uniform, and the difference in the numerical value 31 between adjacent photographs 2 is constant. This difference in numerical value 31 may be set appropriately depending on the definition of the degree of pore enlargement. In this way, by associating the index 3, which indirectly indicates the degree of enlargement of the pores, with the photograph 2, the degree of enlargement of the pores can be quantitatively evaluated during comparison and matching.

[0033] Furthermore, the display unit 1 may display evaluation terms 32 corresponding to the degree of pore enlargement in addition to the numerical values ​​31. The evaluation terms 32 are a type of indicator 3 including predetermined words indicating the size or degree of pore enlargement, such as "none," "small," "medium," and "large," or "none," "mild," "moderate," and "severe," or words in foreign languages, and may be displayed near the corresponding photograph 2 and numerical value 31.

[0034] The evaluation terms 32 are a means of qualitatively expressing the degree of pore enlargement, and may be assigned only to specific photos 2 that are easy to verbalize the state of the pores. Furthermore, it is preferable that the evaluation terms 32 are assigned to photos 2 that are associated with integer evaluation values ​​in the numerical values ​​31.

[0035] FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a photo 2 displayed on the display unit 1. As shown in FIG. 2, photograph 2 shows pores 22 in a part of skin 21, and preferably includes a plurality of pores 22, and more preferably includes about 10 pores 22.

[0036] Photograph 2 is taken with an imaging device capable of capturing high-quality images of human skin, and the imaging range, in other words the range projected / cut out as Photograph 2 during imaging (the so-called angle of view at life-size), is a polygon with at least one side between 5 mm and 20 mm, and is preferably rectangular in shape. This eliminates as much as possible the influence of the surface shape of the skin and parts such as the nose, making it easier to grasp the degree of pore enlargement more accurately.

[0037] In addition to the rectangular shape described above, the photograph 2 may be selected from any shape that appears in a plane (e.g., circle, semicircle, ellipse, parallelogram, other polygons, etc.). The capture range in this case is determined by setting a representative length for any shape, including a rectangular shape, and defining this representative length within a predetermined range. The representative length is a mathematical concept related to determining the size of the shape, and is selected from one or more mathematical concepts, such as diameter, major axis, minor axis, one side, and diagonal. The range of the representative length is preferably 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less. This representative length may also be used when trimming the captured photograph 2 at the same magnification.

[0038] In addition, by limiting the imaging range, it is possible to record the skin of the evaluation target in a narrow range with high accuracy. Furthermore, by making the photograph 2 rectangular, it is possible to narrow the gap between adjacent photographs 2 when the photographs 2 are displayed on the display unit 1, so that the gap between the photographs 2 does not interfere with the comparison of the degree of pore enlargement, making it easy to compare.

[0039] The photograph 2 may be enlarged or reduced as appropriate in accordance with constraints such as the ease of visually checking the degree of pore enlargement and the size of the display unit 1.

[0040] The method of carrying out the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. The present invention is intended to be carried out by a dermatologist who evaluates the pores of the skin of a patient. The method of carrying out the present invention is an example, and the method of carrying out the present invention is not limited to this, and the order of the steps may be reversed.

[0041] <Evaluation method> The present invention is an evaluation method Y for pore enlargement, which identifies the photograph 2 that most closely resembles the evaluation area on the skin of a subject (examinee) by comparing and matching the evaluation area with the photograph 2 included in the evaluation tool X, and identifies the index 3 associated with the identified photograph 2 as the evaluation value of the evaluation area.

[0042] In carrying out the present invention, a user uses the aforementioned evaluation tool X to compare the enlargement of pores in the evaluation area with the enlargement of pores included in the photograph 2 displayed on the display unit 1 of the evaluation tool X. This allows only enlarged pores to be evaluated, and enables the size of the subject's pores to be visually evaluated with high accuracy.

[0043] Furthermore, the user compares the degree of enlargement of the pores of the subject with the photograph 2 displayed on the display unit 1 of the evaluation tool X, thereby identifying the most similar photograph 2, and identifies the index 3 associated with that photograph 2 as the evaluation value of the evaluation area.

[0044] This evaluation value includes at least one of the numerical values ​​31 and the evaluation terms 32 among the indices 3, and the user communicates the evaluation value specified from these to the patient.

[0045] In the comparison and matching, if there are a plurality of photographs 2 that are most similar to the evaluation site, the median value of the indexes 3 corresponding to the photographs 2 is specified as the evaluation value. In this embodiment, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, if the numerical value 31 associated with each photograph 2 increases by 0.5 as the degree of pore enlargement increases, the intermediate value is treated as a value 0.25 greater or smaller than each value of the numerical value 31 assigned to photograph 2, and is identified as the evaluation value. This allows for detailed and highly accurate visual evaluation of the condition of more pores.

[0046] In addition to the above-described method of use, the user can use the evaluation tool X to evaluate the improvement effect on the pores of the subject. In this case, the user takes images of the evaluation site of the patient before and after the cosmetic treatment that has been reported to improve pores. Then, the user specifies the evaluation value of the evaluation site in the captured images before and after the treatment using the evaluation tool X as described above. This allows the patient to recognize changes in the dilation of their skin's pores and also understand the effects of the cosmetic treatment. [Example]

[0047] The present invention will be described in detail below by way of examples with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the present invention is not limited to these examples.

[0048] <Photo selection> From facial photographs of the sample donors (more than 100 Japanese women in their 30s and 40s), particularly from photographs of the skin to be evaluated that had a rectangular shape of 10 mm x 10 mm when projected onto the imaging area, six photographs of skin with different degrees of pore enlargement and one photograph of skin with barely visible pore enlargement were selected. The photographs used were taken in the cheek area, particularly in the area below the cheekbone and away from the nose, which allowed the projection of a skin area as close to a flat surface as possible, minimizing distortion of the shape of pores and enabling the manufacture of a more accurate evaluation tool X. In addition, when selecting, priority was given to products that would make it easy to visually confirm the state of enlarged pores.

[0049] <Selecting the order of photos> The degree of pore enlargement in these seven photos was classified in increments of 0.5 from 0 (none) to 3 (large), and the appropriateness of the classification was evaluated by a dermatologist to determine the order in which the photos were arranged. Here, the higher the number, the greater the degree of pore enlargement. The degree of enlargement of the pores is determined based on the area of ​​the region that can be recognized as a pore.

[0050] <Create a replica> A replica was created to quantitatively evaluate the degree of pore enlargement for comparison with the evaluation tool X created as described above. This replica was created by taking a mold of the pores in the same area as the photograph of the sample donor, and the data was used to mechanically evaluate the shape of the pores through 3D scanning.

[0051] <Verification of usefulness> Using the evaluation tool X (visual evaluation) and replica analysis created as described above, the degree of enlargement of facial pores of subjects (more than 50 Japanese women, each providing samples from both the left and right cheeks, resulting in more than 100 data points) was evaluated, and evaluation values ​​were determined. Figure 3 is a scatter plot in which the evaluation values ​​of pores from visual evaluation are plotted on the horizontal axis and the evaluation values ​​of pores from replica analysis are plotted on the vertical axis. In the visual evaluation, the larger the number, the greater the degree of enlargement of pores. In the replica analysis, the average area of ​​the openings of pores contained in each replica was calculated and plotted. Analysis of the correlation between the two revealed a positive correlation, with a correlation coefficient of 0.4195 (p-value less than 0.001) as verified in Figure 3. This demonstrates that visual evaluation using evaluation tool X is sufficiently useful compared to mechanical evaluation using replica analysis.

[0052] <Evaluation performance of improvement effects> Figure 4 is a graph showing the change in the degree of pore enlargement before and after a cosmetic treatment on pores performed by a dermatologist using evaluation tool X. The horizontal axis of Figure 4 represents the test period (the period from the start of the cosmetic treatment), and the vertical axis represents the numerical value indicating the evaluation value of evaluation tool X, which is shown as a bar graph. Here, the cosmetic treatment is a known chemical peeling treatment known to have pore-improving effects. The resulting reduction in pore enlargement is reflected in the evaluation score obtained by visual assessment using evaluation tool X. In the example shown in Figure 4, the evaluation score decreased over time, from 1.57 ± 0.10 at week 0 of the test period, to 1.532 ± 0.09 at week 6, and to 1.44 ± 0.09 at week 12. Statistical analysis revealed that the evaluation score at week 12 was statistically significantly lower (p value less than 0.01) than the evaluation score at week 0. Therefore, it was demonstrated that the improvement of pores due to cosmetic treatments can be evaluated using the evaluation tool X of the present invention. [Industrial Applicability]

[0053] According to the present invention, it is possible to provide an evaluation tool that can evaluate only enlarged pores and can provide a clear standard for visually evaluating pore size. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] X Evaluation equipment Y Evaluation Method 1 Display 2 Photos 21 Skin 22 Pores 3 indicators 31 Numbers 32 Evaluation Terms

Claims

1. The evaluation tool has a display unit that can display a plurality of photographs of skin including pores of the same type of case, each having a different degree of pore enlargement, in order of increasing or decreasing degree, in correspondence with an index indicating the degree of pore enlargement.

2. The photograph has a predetermined shape with a representative length of 5 mm or more and 20 mm or less when the skin is projected onto an imaging range. The evaluation tool according to claim 1 .

3. The photograph has a rectangular shape with a side length of 5 mm to 20 mm when the skin is projected onto an imaging range. The evaluation tool according to claim 1 or 2.

4. The index includes a numerical value and an evaluation term including a predetermined word. The evaluation tool according to claim 1 .

5. A method for evaluating pore enlargement, comprising: comparing and matching an evaluation area on a subject's skin with the photograph included in the evaluation tool described in claim 1, thereby identifying the photograph that most closely resembles the evaluation area; and identifying the index associated with the identified photograph as an evaluation value for the evaluation area.

6. If there are two photographs that most closely resemble the evaluation site, specifying an intermediate value of the indices corresponding to the two photographs as the evaluation value. The evaluation method according to claim 5 .

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