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Dermatology ·

Highmark issues first U.S. payer policy covering Nevisense lesion testing; optical imaging tracks skin fibrosis in systemic sclerosis

A handheld dermatoscope standing upright on its short ribbed grip, its round lens head facing the viewer with an amber ring of light around the lens.
THE SHORT READ

SciBase said Oct. 14 that Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield issued the first positive U.S. medical policy for its Nevisense AI and impedance platform, for dermatologists evaluating atypical pigmented lesions.

A Lancet Rheumatology cohort study also tested spatial frequency domain imaging as a measure of skin fibrosis in systemic sclerosis.

THE DETAILS
  • Payment Oct 14, 2026
    Highmark issues SciBase's first U.S. medical policy covering Nevisense testing of suspicious pigmented lesions
    SciBase said Oct. 14 that Nevisense, a point-of-care platform that combines AI and EIS technology, received its first positive medical policy from Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield, covering all Highmark commercial insured lines of business. Under the policy, EIS is considered medically necessary when a dermatologist is evaluating a clinically atypical suspicious pigmented lesion on the trunk or extremities that measures 2 mm to 20 mm, in a patient 18 or older. The device must be used by a dermatologist trained in clinical and dermoscopic evaluation of pigmented lesions, the company said.
    Sources: SciBase, SciBase (Oct. 15 release), RTTNews
  • Research Oct 14, 2026
    Spatial frequency domain imaging tracks skin fibrosis in systemic sclerosis in 49-patient prospective cohort
    A single-center prospective cohort study published Oct. 14 in The Lancet Rheumatology assessed spatial frequency domain imaging (SFDI) of skin fibrosis in 49 participants with systemic sclerosis and 25 control participants. For each one-point increase in local modified Rodnan skin score (mRSS), diffuse reflectance (Rd) measured by SFDI decreased (β = -0.0028; 95% CI -0.0050 to -0.0006; P = .014). SFDI correlations were weak to moderate with mRSS (r -0.38 to -0.48) and moderate with histological fibrosis (r -0.34 to -0.52).
    Sources: The Lancet Rheumatology, PubMed

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