A computer assisted diagnosis tool for the classification of burns by depth of injury.

In this paper, a computer assisted diagnosis (CAD) tool for the classification of burns into their depths is proposed. The aim of the system is to separate burn wounds from healthy skin, and to distinguish among the different types of burns (burn depths) by means of digital photographs. It is intended to be used as an aid to diagnosis in local medical centres, where there is a lack of specialists. Another potential use of the system is as an educational tool. The system is based on the analysis of digital photographs. It extracts from those images colour and texture information, as these are the characteristics observed by physicians in order to form a diagnosis. Clinical effectiveness of the method was demonstrated on 35 clinical burn wound images, yielding an average classification success rate of 88% compared to expert classified images.