Observational studyPloS one2020
The effect of constitutive pigmentation on the measured emissivity of human skin.
Observational study in PloS one, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 36 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
36 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 85 citations in OpenAlex.
- Is thermography an effective screening tool for differentiating benign and malignant skin lesions in the head and neck? A systematic review.Archives of dermatological research · 2024Pooled it
- Ozone therapy by rectal insufflation in long COVID syndrome: a preliminary study with thermographic evaluation and quality of life measurement.Future science OA · 2026Article
- Thermographic assessment of surface temperature distribution and agreement between a thermographic camera, infrared thermometer, and rectal temperature in exercising horses under tropical climate conditions.Veterinary world · 2026Article
- Observational
- Accidental hypothermia.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2026Review
- Machine Learning Calibration of Smartphone-Based Infrared Thermal Cameras: Improved Bias and Persistent Random Error.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Dynamic Infrared Thermographic Evaluation of Facial Thermal Response During Face Mask Wearing.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Article
- When Kids Radiate: Low-Resolution Thermography for Total Energy Expenditure Estimation in Pediatric Patients - A Proof of Concept.IEEE open journal of engineering in medicine and biology · 2026Article
- Impact of skin tone and cupping on erythema and thermal imaging measurements.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Impact of Skin Tone and Cupping on Erythema and Thermal Imaging Measurements.Research square · 2025Article
- Thermal profile of the spine for the assessment of bone metabolic disorders.Scientific reports · 2025Article
- Relationship Between Infrared Thermography and Functional Parameters in the Lower Limbs of Hemiplegic Patients.Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Thermal imaging-based core peripheral temperature difference measurement for neonatal monitoring in the NICU.Biomedical optics express · 2025Article
- Article
- Water retention influences thigh skin temperature variation post-exercise: preliminary study of bioimpedance analysis and thermography data.Frontiers in sports and active living · 2025Article
- Can pin-site inflammation be detected with thermographic imaging? A cross-sectional study from the USA and Denmark of patients treated with external fixators.Acta orthopaedica · 2024Article
- Breast Cancer Screening Using Inverse Modeling of Surface Temperatures and Steady-State Thermal Imaging.Cancers · 2024Article
- Thermography Sensor to Assess Motor and Sensitive Neuromuscular Sequels of Brain Damage.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2024Observational
- Variations of skin thermal diffusivity on different skin regions.Skin research and technology : official journal of International Society for Bioengineering and the Skin (ISBS) [and] International Society for Digital Imaging of Skin (ISDIS) [and] International Society for Skin Imaging (ISSI) · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe measurement of body temperature has become commonplace in the current COVID-19 pandemic. Body temperature can be measured using thermal infrared imaging, a safe, non-contact method that relies on the emissivity of the skin being known to provide accurate readings. Skin pigmentation affects the absorption of visible light and enables us to see variations in skin colour. Pigmentation may also affect the absorption of infrared radiation and thus affect thermal imaging. Human skin has an accepted emissivity of 0.98 but the effect of different skin pigmentation on this value is not known. In this study, we investigated the influence of different skin pigmentation on thermal emissivity in 65 adult volunteers.
methodsA reference object of known emissivity (electrical tape) was applied to participant's skin on the inner upper arm. Tape and arm were imaged simultaneously using a thermal infrared camera. The emissivity was set on the camera to the known value for electrical tape. The emissivity was altered manually until the skin temperature using thermal imaging software was equal to the initial tape temperature. This provided the calculated emissivity value of the skin. Participants were grouped according to skin pigmentation, quantified using the Fitzpatrick skin phototyping scale and reflectance spectrophotometry. Differences in emissivity values between skin pigmentation groups were assessed by one-way ANOVA.
resultsThe mean calculated emissivity for the 65 participants was 0.972 (range 0.96-0.99). No significant differences in emissivity were observed between participants when grouped by skin pigmentation according to the Fitzpatrick scale (p = 0.859) or reflectance spectrophotometry (p = 0.346).
conclusionThese data suggest that skin pigmentation does not affect thermal emissivity measurement of skin temperature using thermal infrared imaging. This study will aid further research into the application of thermal infrared imaging as a screening or bedside diagnostic tool in clinical practice.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.