Efficacy of Autofluorescence Imaging as an Adjunctive Technique for Examination and Detection of Oral Potentially Malignant Disorders: A Systematic Review.

BACKGROUND: Oral cancer is a serious global issue and early diagnosis of oral cancer is the key in reducing the high mortality rate. Autofluorescence properties of oral mucosa have been gaining interest in the field of early diagnosis of oral premalignant lesions.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of the study was to evaluate the clinical usefulness of an autofluorescence based imaging system to detect oral premalignant and malignant lesions.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: A systematic review of the English-language literature to evaluate the effectiveness of visually enhanced lesion scope (VELscope) published between 1966 and March, 2014 was undertaken. Data relating to study design, sampling and characteristics of the study group, interventions, and reported outcomes and diagnostic value of VELscope were abstracted from articles meeting inclusion and exclusion criteria.

RESULTS: Eleven articles that met the inclusion criteria were included. In nine studies, all the lesions underwent histological assessment, whereas the remaining four studies only performed histological assessment on suspicious lesions. Visually enhanced lesion scope showed high sensitivity values in detecting oral premalignant and malignant lesions. However, most of the studies reported it inability in discriminating dysplasia cases from nondysplasia cases.

CONCLUSION: There is insufficient evidence to support the use of VELscope in primary care setting, however, they may be useful in hands of a specialist.