Unmixing of human skin optical reflectance maps by Non-negative Matrix Factorization algorithm

We present in this paper the decomposition of human skin absorption spectra with a Non-negative Matrix Factorization method. In doing so, we are able to quantify the relative proportion of the main chromophores present in the epidermis and the dermis. We present experimental results showing that we obtain a good estimate of melanin and hemoglobin concentrations. Our approach has been validated by analyzing the human skin absorption spectra in areas of healthy skin and areas affected by melasma on eight patients.

► Human skin absorbance maps are analyzed by Non-negative Matrix Factorization. ► Absorbance maps are obtained with a Hyper-Spectral system called ASCLEPIOS. ► A multiplicative update approach quantifies relative values of skin's pigments. ► The method is validated on eight patients affected by melasma.