ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: An awareness of the prevalence and morphologic patterns of acral melanocytic nevi (AMN) is crucial in the diagnosis of AMN and for its differentiation from acral melanoma. Although studies regarding prevalence and dermoscopic patterns of AMN in other ethnic groups have been reported, studies in Korean populations are scarce. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the prevalence, number and dermoscopic patterns of AMN cases in a Korean population. METHODS: We investigated the prevalence and dermoscopic patterns of AMN in a Korean population. RESULTS: Six hundred Korean patients were enrolled in this study. AMNs were observed on the hands in 53.2% of patients and on the feet in 30.5% of patients. The prevalence of AMN according to anatomical location was as follows: dorsum of hands (43.8%), palms (15.7%), both palms and dorsum of hands (6.3%), dorsum of feet (24.8%), soles (9.2%), and dorsa of feet and soles (3.5%). On volar skin, the common dermoscopic patterns were as follows: parallel-furrow (51.7%), lattice-like (12.1%), globular (9.2%), fibrillar (8.6%), reticular (7.5%), and homogeneous (5.7%). On dorsal skin, reticular (41.0%), homogeneous (27.0%), globular (21.6%), and reticular-homogeneous (7.7%) patterns were commonly observed. The prevalence of AMN increased with patient age until patients reached their forties and decreased according to age once patients reached their sixties. CONCLUSION: The results of our study show that AMN on hands and feet are common in Korean patients and that characteristic dermoscopic patterns of AMN exist. This study provides information regarding the prevalence and dermoscopic patterns of AMN in a Korean population.