Dermoscopy of subclinical nail involvement in patients with diabetes mellitus: a case-control study

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is a chronic disease characterized by elevated blood glucose levels that can lead to serious complications. Nails are a mirror for general health so changes in nails can be an indicator of disease progression in patients with DM. To detect subclinical nail changes in patients with DM using dermoscopy. In total, 100 participants were recruited, all of them from outpatient clinics, made up of a group with DM (n = 50) and an age- and sex-matched control group without DM (n = 50). All patients had clinically apparently normal nails. In both groups, dermoscopic examinations were conducted and compared. It was found that 33 patients in the DM group (66%) had dermoscopic nail findings in the form of microhaemorrhage (26%), longitudinal striations (24%), distal subungual onychomycosis (24%), superficial pitting (20%), distal onycholysis (18%), splinter haemorrhage (14%), subungual hyperkeratosis (12%), dilated vessels (10%) and distal yellowish discoloration (8%). Nail examination can be accomplished with the help of dermoscopy to detect subclinical nail changes in patients diagnosed with DM and, therefore, can give us an idea about disease progression and help with control of DM and treatment plans.