Appearance of aging signs in differently pigmented facial skin by a novel imaging system

BACKGROUND: Facial wrinkles, pores, and uneven skin tone are major beauty concerns. There is differential manifestation of aging signs in different ethnic groups. In this regard, studies on Black Africans from the African continent are scarce. OBJECTIVE: To investigate facial wrinkles, pores, and skin tone in Black African women from Mauritius Island and elucidate the differences to Caucasian women from France. METHODS: Facial images were taken using the imaging system ColorFace(®). Wrinkles and pores were measured by their length, depth, surface, volume, and number; for skin tone, we measured L*a*b* and calculated ITA, IWA(Newtone), and color homogeneity. RESULTS: We found good correlations of wrinkle and pore scores with expert ranking done on ColorFace(®) images for Caucasians (Spearman's rho = 0.78 and 0.72) and Black Africans (Spearman's rho = 0.86 and 0.65). Caucasians showed more advanced facial signs of aging than Black Africans. Exceptions were vertical lines on upper lip and the depth of pores which were greatest for the Black African subjects. Black Africans had higher heterogeneity scores indicative for uneven skin tone. Luminance (L*) was significantly higher in Caucasians but a* and b* values were significantly higher in the Black African subjects. ITA and IWA(Newtone) were significantly higher for Caucasians. CONCLUSIONS: The high correlation between expert ranking and wrinkle and pore measurements prove ColorFace(®) a valid imaging system to study skin aging. Our results show that Africans from the African continent show delayed signs of aging compared to Caucasians. Some exceptions suggest that ethnic differences in facial aging are a complex phenomenon.