Wound measurement by curvature maps: a feasibility study

A non-contact wound measurement method by laser scanner and curvature maps is presented. A patient's foot ulcer is scanned by FastSCAN ten times over a three-week period. With the surface's 3D coordinates, curvature maps of the ulcerous area are calculated. Utilizing a specified rim curvature value, the wound edge is detected and processed via cubic spline smoothing, which is qualitatively verified by a photograph. Subsequently, the depth, area and volume of the wound can be calculated. The results indicate that laser scanning followed by curvature analysis might be a potential clinical tool for non-contact measurement of wounds.