Identifying skin type using the baumann skin type questionnaire in Korean women who visited a dermatologie clinic

Background: Skin types vary, making it difficult to identify them at a glance. To effectively understand skin type, analysis based on a questionnaire could be helpful. Objective: The purpose of this study was to identify the accuracy and effectiveness of the Baumann skin type questionnaire (BSTQ) compared with an interview with a dermatologie specialist. In addition, we aimed to identify differences in skin type proportions according to age and develop a modified BSTQ. Methods: Subjects included 202 women (19∼64 years of age) who visited the dermatologie clinic of our hospital. They completed both the BSTQ and an interview with a dermatologie specialist. A modified BSTQ was developed by removing similar and racial questions and adjusting grading scores. Results: The agreement between skin type proportions analyzed by the BSTQ and an interview was not reasonable (a: =0.428, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.363∼0.493). There was a correlation between the proportion of dryness and age (R²=0.029, p<0.05). However, other skin type proportions (sensitivity, pigmentation, and wrinkles) were not significantly correlated with age. The modified BSTQ showed substantial agreement with the BSTQ in skin type proportions (a: =0.691, 95% CI: 0.641-0.740). Conclusion: We identified the skin types of Korean women of various ages using the BSTQ and an interview. Furthermore, the modified BSTQ might be helpful for accurately recognizing skin types.