ECLA grading: an acne classification for everyday clinical practice

Background. Different acne gradings have been proposed: global grading, sem i-global grading, quantitative grading and photographic grading. They are m ainly used in clinical studies for the evaluation of acne treatment. Howeve r, it would be important for physicians to have an acne grade which would b e useful for assessing acne lesions prior to treatment and following treatm ent efficacy. Methods. Six French dermatologists developed an acne grading scaled called "ECLA" which only takes 2 minutes to fill out and specificall y designed for use by dermatologist practitioners. In addition, the intra- and inter-observer reliability of the grading scale was assessed. Results. This analysis demonstrated the excellent reliability of the ECLA grading sc ale both in terms of intra- and inter-observer variability except for the r etentional factor. The cross physician reliability decreased with time spec ificity for the retention factor, indicating that previous training prior t o a multicentric clinical study would be necessary. Conclusion. ECLA gradin g appears to be an interesting and useful tool in dermatology for the follo w-up of acne patients.