Purpose: Dry skin is associated with skin barrier disruption and a risk of inflammatory skin disease. Nurses often rely on their experience and knowledge to assess dry skin, but an objective assessment method is needed for consistent quality care. Objective evaluation indicators for skin dryness using digital image analysis of skin morphology were previously identified in the forearms of older people. This study aimed to determine the usefulness of those indicators and identify an objective indicator that reflects the skin dryness degree in the forearms and lower legs in adults using digital image analysis.
　Methods: This single-center cross-sectional study（June 2014 to March 2015）was conducted in Tokyo, Japan. Participants’ characteristics were obtained using questionnaires. Skin dryness of the forearms and lower legs was evaluated using electrostatic capacity, whereas skin morphology was measured using digital image analysis. The relationship between electrostatic capacity and skin morphology was analyzed using Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient.
　Results: This study included 22 different areas of the left and right sides of the forearms or lower legs of the 11 participants. Compared with the forearm, the interval of the sulcus cutis of the lower legs was wider, and the parallelism was lower. The parallelism of the sulcus cutis was negatively correlated with electrostatic capacity in the lower legs（rho = -0.48, p = 0.025）. No correlation was observed between the arms.
　Discussion: Detecting skin morphology by digital image analysis may be an effective indicator for assessing dry skin of lower legs in adults and improving care.