Documentation of wound surface area from tracings of wound perimeters. Clinical report on three techniques.

Tracing wounds on clear plastic film provides a viable option for recording wound surface area. The wound area can be determined by a graph paper counting, planimetry, or weighing technique. All methods are accurate for confirming known areas. When different clinicians trace wounds, variance in their tracings may result in additional deviations in the calculated area regardless of the technique used for determining surface area. The use of wound tracing merits broader application. The reliability and tolerance levels for the various techniques should, however, be determined before using the techniques for research purposes.