ReviewJournal of biomedical optics2024
Effect of skin color on optical properties and the implications for medical optical technologies: a review.
Review in Journal of biomedical optics, 2024. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 38 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
38 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 55 citations in OpenAlex.
- Unifying the spectrum: a framework for the meta-analysis of human skin tone scales.Journal of biomedical optics · 2026Pooled it
- Micropore visualization and lifetime following microneedle application to skin of differing pigments.Drug delivery and translational research · 2025Trial
- Comparative assessment of healthy tissue oxygenation using near-infrared imaging, transcutaneous oxygen measurement, and plethysmography.Scientific reports · 2025Trial
- Review
- [A simulation study of photothermal effects in transcranial photobiomodulation].Sheng wu yi xue gong cheng xue za zhi = Journal of biomedical engineering = Shengwu yixue gongchengxue zazhi · 2026Article
- Dose dependence and neurovascular mechanisms of the fMRI response to pulsed photobiomodulation in humans.Journal of cerebral blood flow and metabolism : official journal of the International Society of Cerebral Blood Flow and Metabolism · 2026Article
- Quantitative evaluation of skin pigmentation effects on photoplethysmography using vascular finger phantoms and Monte Carlo simulation.Journal of biomedical optics · 2026Article
- Pigmentation-dependent skin injury thresholds with nanosecond single-pulse laser exposure.Journal of biomedical optics · 2026Article
- Neural Network-Based Depth Retrieval of Fluorescent Targets From Wide-Field Fluorescence Intensity Images in Scattering Tissues.Journal of biophotonics · 2026Article
- Defining Safe Light Intensity Limits of Near-Infrared Illumination Avoiding Skin Heating in Medical Optical Diagnostic Methods.Journal of biophotonics · 2026Article
- Wearable Sensing for Clinical Physiology Monitoring: Emerging Paradigms.Physiology (Bethesda, Md.) · 2026Review
- Horizon Scanning for Medical Technologies: Methodological Framework Development Study of the Medical Innovation Scanning Techniques (MIST) Framework.Journal of medical Internet research · 2026Article
- Accuracy and Bias of Pulse Oximetry in the Intensive Care Unit: A Prospective Observational Study.Nursing in critical care · 2026Observational
- Assessing the Safety and Efficacy of a Noninvasive Device in the Management of Musculoskeletal Pain Using Low-Level Light Therapy: Double-Blinded, Randomized, Placebo-Controlled, Multicentric Study.JMIR biomedical engineering · 2026Article
- Impact of skin pigmentation on photoacoustic tomography: a phantom study.Biophotonics discovery · 2026Article
- Optical phantoms for the characterization and validation of imaging and spectroscopy: a review.Biophotonics discovery · 2026Review
- Standardized Photobiomodulation Dosimetry Targeting the Base of Calvarial Critical-Sized Defects for Bone Regeneration: A Preclinical RCT Comparing Flattop vs. Gaussian Beam Profiles, with or Without Bio-OssJournal of functional biomaterials · 2026Article
- Hybrid LiDAR-RGB 3D surface reconstruction for collision avoidance in radiotherapy: a proof‑of‑concept phantom study.Physical and engineering sciences in medicine · 2026Article
- Age Prediction of Hematoma from Hyperspectral Images Using Convolutional Neural Networks.Journal of imaging · 2026Article
- Multispectral optoelectronic sensor to detect peripheral blood pulsatile variations with equivalent performance in light, medium and dark skin tones.Scientific reports · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors at 4 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
Significance: Skin color affects light penetration leading to differences in its absorption and scattering properties. COVID-19 highlighted the importance of understanding of the interaction of light with different skin types, e.g., pulse oximetry (PO) unreliably determined oxygen saturation levels in people from Black and ethnic minority backgrounds. Furthermore, with increased use of other medical wearables using light to provide disease information and photodynamic therapies to treat skin cancers, a thorough understanding of the effect skin color has on light is important for reducing healthcare disparities. Aim: The aim of this work is to perform a thorough review on the effect of skin color on optical properties and the implication of variation on optical medical technologies. Approach: Published Results: Variation among reported values is significant. We show that absorption coefficients for dark skin are Conclusions: Current published data suggest that at wavelengths beyond 940 nm light transmission is greatest for all FSTs. Data beyond 1000 nm are minimal and further study is required. It is possible that the amount of light transmitted through skin for all skin colors will converge with increasing wavelength enabling optical medical technologies to become independent of skin color.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
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.