What is my skin type?
Developed in 1975 by Thomas B. Fitzpatrick, MD, PhD, a dermatologist at the Harvard Medical School, as a way to classify the response of skin to UV light. The Fitzpatrick Scale is a numerical classification for the colour of skin. It has become widely used in the laser and ipl industry to classify the colour of skin. Components incorporated are:-
Genetic Disposition – Colour of eyes, hair, skin and if you have freckles
Reaction to Sun Exposure – If you blister, how fast you tan and degree of tan.
Tanning Habits – When did you last expose your body to the sun etc.
The results of each set of classification questions added together give your Fitzpatrick score.
Genetic Disposition
|
Score |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
|
What is the colour of your eyes? |
Light blue, Grey, Green |
Blue, Grey or Green |
Blue |
Dark Brown |
Brownish Black |
|
What is the natural colour of your hair? |
Sandy Red |
Blond |
Chestnut/Dark Blond |
Dark Brown |
Black |
|
What is the colour of your skin (non exposed areas)? |
Reddish |
Very Pale |
Pale with Beige tint |
Light Brown |
Dark Brown |
|
Do you have freckles on unexposed areas? |
Many |
Several |
Few |
Incidental |
none |
Total score for Genetic Disposition: _____
Reaction to Sun Exposure
|
Score |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
|
What happens when you stay in the sun too long? |
Painful redness, blistering, peeling |
Blistering followed by peeling |
Burns sometimes followed by peeling |
Rare burns |
Never had burns |
|
To What degree do you turn brown? |
Hardly or not at all |
Light colour tan |
Reasonable tan |
Tan very easy |
Turn dark brown quickly |
|
Do you turn brown within several hours after sun exposure? |
Never |
Seldom |
Sometimes |
Often |
Always |
|
How does your face react to the sun? |
Very sensitive |
Sensitive |
Normal |
Very resistant |
Never had a problem |
Total score for Reaction to Sun Exposure: _____
Tanning Habits
|
Score |
0 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
|
When did you last expose your body to sun (or artificial sunlamp/tanning cream)? |
More than 3 months ago |
2-3 months ago |
1-2 months ago |
Less than a month ago |
Less than 2 weeks ago |
|
Did you expose the area to be treated to the sun? |
Never |
Hardly ever |
Sometimes |
Often |
Always |
Total score for Tanning Habits: _____
Add up the total scores for each of the three sections for your Skin Type Score.
Skin Type Score - Fitzpatrick Skin Type
|
0-7 |
I |
|
8-16 |
II |
|
17-25 |
III |
|
25-30 |
IV |
|
over 30 |
V -VI |
TYPE 1: Highly sensitive, always burns, never tans. Example: Red hair with freckles
TYPE 2: Very sun sensitive, burns easily, tans minimally. Example: Fair skinned, fair haired (blond) Caucasians
TYPE 3: Sun sensitive skin, sometimes burns, slowly tans to light brown. Example: Darker Caucasians.
TYPE 4: Minimally sun sensitive, burns minimally, always tans to moderate brown. Example: Mediterranian, Asian, Hispanic.
TYPE 5: Sun insensitive skin, rarely burns, tans well. Example: Some Hispanics, some African, some Middle Eastern
TYPE 6: Sun insensitive, never burns, deeply pigmented. Example: Darker African, Darker Middle Eastern.