Work

Assessment of Methods and Attributes Used to Characterize Skin Quality: A Systematic Literature Review

Year: 2026

Type: review

Abstract: BACKGROUND: Skin quality is an aggregate term encompassing a broad range of skin attributes that convey its overall look, feel, and health. OBJECTIVE: To assess consistency in definitions and treatment outcomes for various skin quality attributes. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We searched PubMed, MEDLINE, and Embase to perform 2 systematic reviews. The initial search identified published articles (January 1, 2000-October 13, 2021) and abstracts (January 1, 2019-October 13, 2021) that used an objective or subjective instrument to assess skin quality at ≥2 timepoints. A supplemental search of meta-analyses published from 2010 to May 2024 was conducted to evaluate treatment outcomes for each skin quality attribute. RESULTS: The initial search included 903 studies comprising 4,668 individual observations. Subjective end points comprised 87% of observations. Substantial inconsistencies were identified in the definition of individual skin quality attributes across studies, with multiple definitions in use in the literature for each attribute (range, 7-17) and no clear consensus. CONCLUSION: This extensive review of the current state of the aesthetic medicine literature revealed an absence of consensus definitions for skin quality attributes, which poses a barrier to comparative evaluation of treatment options and could affect physician recommendations, potentially with downstream effects on patient outcomes.

Source: Dermatologic Surgery

DOI: 10.1097/dss.0000000000004968