Scabies study using new technology starts tomorrow

Public health physician Simon Thornley’s study is exploring the use of Firstcheck’s smartphone technology to help detect and combat the scabies skin disease.

Scabies is often mis-diagnosed which can cause the highly infectious disease to spread and lead to complications like serious bacterial skin infections – a major cause of hospital admissions.

Using Firstcheck’s skin check smartphone app and smartphone skin magnifier lens, Dr Thornley is “evaluating the possibility of using Firstcheck’s teledermatology platform and specialised lens as an affordable addition to routine primary care to improve the identification of scabies and diagnosis”.

“From a clinical viewpoint, scabies is relatively straightforward to treat once diagnosed,” explains Dr. Thornley. “The challenge is accurate diagnosis, as studies show that scabies is infrequently recognised by primary care physicians and is frequently misdiagnosed, which leads to further transmission of the mite and institutional outbreaks.”

“We are focussed on improving scabies control because our research has shown it is associated with rheumatic fever and chronic rheumatic heart disease. We also understand scabies and impetigo to be commonly linked. We could do a lot better in the health sector to recognise and control the disease.”

Scabies is an itchy rash caused by a mite that burrows under the skin. It is transmitted by skin contact and sometimes through bedding or furnishing.

Despite scabies being a common public health problem with an estimated 300 million cases prevalent worldwide , scabies is not a notifiable disease in New Zealand as it is other countries such as Denmark and Belgium.

Dr. Thornley and his research team from the University of Auckland and Auckland DHB, analysed data from more than 200,000 New Zealand children, and found that those with scabies were 23 times more likely to develop rheumatic fever or chronic rheumatic heart disease.

“Definitive diagnosis of scabies is made by microscopic identification of the scabies mite or their eggs,” says Dr. Thornley.

“Firstcheck’s technology, with a cost-effective mobile teledermatology platform and affordable smartphone skin magnifier (dermoscope), opens up exciting opportunites for cost-effective and accurate management and diagnosis of scabies. “

Firstcheck was originally developed as a cost-effective way for anyone to check for skin cancers simply by taking a photo of a suspicious mole with their phone camera and sending them direct to a skin cancer doctor for review within 72 hours.

For Firstcheck founder, Hayden Laird, that Firstcheck could now be at the forefront of identifying and preventing the spread of such virulent skin diseases such as scabies is a natural extension of the technology’s capabilities.

“Using the powerful cameras in smart phones, secure software applications, smartphone camera attachments – and clever doctors at the other end - Firstcheck’s technology can help diagnose a range of skin conditions and help streamline healthcare delivery.”