The advantages of using an alcohol-based gel as a contact medium for dermoscopy instead of immersion oil [Dermoskopide i·mmersiyon yagi yerine alkol bazli jel kullaniminin avantajlari]

Bacground and Design: The surface of a dermoscope can easily be contaminated with microorganisms due to contact with patient's skin and may lead to infections. Material and Method: To investigate the efficacy of an alcohol-based gel comparing with immersion oil for preventing contamination. One hundred cutaneous lesions were evaluated with a hand-held dermoscope. The procedure was performed by using an alcohol-based gel on the glass surface in half of the patients, and immersion oil was applied in the remainder. Specimens from the glass surface were taken for bacteriological cultures just after the dermoscopic examinations. Results: There were bacterial growth in 9 (18%) in the alcohol-based group and in 22 (44%) in the immersion oil group (p<0.01). Alcohol based gel is found more efficient than immersion oil in preventing bacterial contamination of the dermoscope.