Clinical trial · Observational
Correlation of Early Postoperative Scar Appearance With Long-term Scar Outcomes
Correlation of Early Postoperative Scar Appearance With Long-term Scar Outcomes: a Single Academic Institution Study
NCT04015453CI-TRIAL-00044859completedClinicalTrials.gov clinicaltrialsProvenance
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
A retrospective cohort study of early and late period postoperative scars using previously validated survey measures and clinical photographs. The target population consists of participants treated with Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) for a facial skin cancer by the division of dermatologic surgery. This study aims to determine if patient assessment of scar appearance correlates with physician ratings and/or third-person observer ratings. Secondary goals are to assess for correlations between early post-operative scar appearance and long-term scar appearance as well as identification of predictive factors for scar healing.
Conditions
Conditions (5)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohs Micrographic Surgery | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Quality of Life | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Scar | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Skin Cancer Face | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
| Surgical Wound | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mohs micrographic surgery | Procedure | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (0)
[]Primary outcomes (2)
- measure
- Physician Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS)
- timeFrame
- 1 week postoperative measure
- description
- The Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS) is a validated scoring instrument that takes into account patient, physician, and third-party observer input to evaluate postsurgical scar quality in clinical photos. The instrument has 6 patient and 6 observer specific questions. Scoring of each question is performed on a scale of 1 to 10 where 1 is synonymous with "like normal skin" and 10 to the "worst scar imaginable". In addition, an overall total opinion score on a scale from 1 to 10 where 1 is akin to normal skin and 10 to the worst scar imaginable. Consequently, higher scores on either scale represent a worse scar appearance in the perception of the rater.
- measure
- Physician Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS)
- timeFrame
- 3 month postoperative measure
- description
- Please refer to description above.
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Adult participants diagnosed with a biopsy-proven facial skin cancer (melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers) and treated with Mohs micrographic surgery (MMS) from August 2015 to February 2016. Exclusion Criteria: * Participants with post-excisional reconstruction requiring multiple techniques, incomplete or missing patient photographs from postsurgical visits, or if the patient received any postoperative scar interventions (pulse-dye laser, scar revision, etc.).
References
Publications (7)
- BACKGROUNDBrown BC, McKenna SP, Siddhi K, McGrouther DA, Bayat A. The hidden cost of skin scars: quality of life after skin scarring. J Plast Reconstr Aesthet Surg. 2008 Sep;61(9):1049-58. doi: 10.1016/j.bjps.2008.03.020. Epub 2008 Jul 9. PMID 18617450
- BACKGROUNDYoung VL, Hutchison J. Insights into patient and clinician concerns about scar appearance: semiquantitative structured surveys. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2009 Jul;124(1):256-265. doi: 10.1097/PRS.0b013e3181a80747. PMID 19568089
- BACKGROUNDDey JK, Ishii LE, Byrne PJ, Boahene KD, Ishii M. The social penalty of facial lesions: new evidence supporting high-quality reconstruction. JAMA Facial Plast Surg. 2015 Mar-Apr;17(2):90-6. doi: 10.1001/jamafacial.2014.1131. PMID 25474194
- BACKGROUNDDraaijers LJ, Tempelman FR, Botman YA, Tuinebreijer WE, Middelkoop E, Kreis RW, van Zuijlen PP. The patient and observer scar assessment scale: a reliable and feasible tool for scar evaluation. Plast Reconstr Surg. 2004 Jun;113(7):1960-5; discussion 1966-7. doi: 10.1097/01.prs.0000122207.28773.56. PMID 15253184
- BACKGROUNDShao K, Parker JC, Taylor L, Mitra N, Sobanko JF. Reliability of the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale When Used With Postsurgical Scar Photographs. Dermatol Surg. 2018 Dec;44(12):1650-1652. doi: 10.1097/DSS.0000000000001479. No abstract available. PMID 29381545
- BACKGROUNDSobanko JF, Zhang J, Margolis DJ, Etzkorn JR, Shin TM, Sarwer DB, Miller CJ. Patient-reported quality of life and psychosocial health prior to skin cancer treatment - A cross-sectional study. J Am Acad Dermatol. 2016 Jul;75(1):217-218.e2. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2016.01.033. No abstract available. PMID 27317520
- BACKGROUNDZhang J, Miller CJ, O'Malley V, Bowman EB, Etzkorn JR, Shin TM, Sobanko JF. Patient and Physician Assessment of Surgical Scars: A Systematic Review. JAMA Facial Plast Surg. 2018 Jul 1;20(4):314-323. doi: 10.1001/jamafacial.2017.2314.