Abstract: In vivo Reflectance Confocal Microscopy (RCM) is a kind of three-dimensional CT imaging technology based on the confocal optical principle, with in-situ, in-vivo, real-time and dynamic features. RCM has been widely applied in the field of dermatology because of its special superiorities, which is one of the most promising non-invasive skin imaging methods in recent years. RCM is mainly used in the diagnosis, differential diagnosis and efficacy monitoring of dermatoma, pigmented dermatoses, inflammatory dermatoses and vascular dermatoses so on. The structure and working principle, characteristics, advantages, and application in dermatology of RCM were reviewed in the article.

Key words: microscopy, confocal laser, dermatologic diseases