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Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients.

Journal articles  - Journal Article
Hao, S; Matos, J; Dempsey, K; Alwakeel, M; Houghtaling, J; Hong, C; Gichoya, J; Kibbe, W; Pencina, M; Cox, CE; Wong, A-KI
Published in: Sci Data
January 28, 2026

Although hypothesized to be the root cause of the pulse oximetry disparities, skin tone and its use for improving medical therapies have yet to be extensively studied. Studies that previously used self-reported race as a proxy variable for skin tone cannot account for skin tone variabilities within race groups. This study aimed to create a unique baseline dataset that included skin tone and electronic health record (EHR) data to better evaluate health disparities associated with pulse oximetry. We collected skin tone data at 16 different body locations using multiple devices, including administered visual scales, colorimetric, spectrophotometric, and photography via mobile phone cameras. All patients' data were converted into a common data model and de-identified before publication in PhysioNet. We assessed 167 features per skin location on 128 patients linked with their EHR data, such as laboratory data, vital sign recordings, and demographic information. We also include 2,438 images from mobile phones to assist in developing artificial intelligence tools to combat health disparities.

Duke Scholars

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Published In

Sci Data

DOI

EISSN

2052-4463

Publication Date

January 28, 2026

Volume

13

Issue

1

Start / End Page

145

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Skin Pigmentation
  • Prospective Studies
  • Oximetry
  • Humans
  • Electronic Health Records
 

Citation

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Hao, S., Matos, J., Dempsey, K., Alwakeel, M., Houghtaling, J., Hong, C., … Wong, A.-K. (2026). Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients. Sci Data, 13(1), 145. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-025-06457-9
Hao, Sicheng, Joao Matos, Katelyn Dempsey, Mahmoud Alwakeel, Jared Houghtaling, Chuan Hong, Judy Gichoya, et al. “Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients.Sci Data 13, no. 1 (January 28, 2026): 145. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41597-025-06457-9.
Hao S, Matos J, Dempsey K, Alwakeel M, Houghtaling J, Hong C, et al. Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients. Sci Data. 2026 Jan 28;13(1):145.
Hao, Sicheng, et al. “Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients.Sci Data, vol. 13, no. 1, Jan. 2026, p. 145. Pubmed, doi:10.1038/s41597-025-06457-9.
Hao S, Matos J, Dempsey K, Alwakeel M, Houghtaling J, Hong C, Gichoya J, Kibbe W, Pencina M, Cox CE, Wong A-KI. Skin tone and clinical dataset from a prospective trial on acute care patients. Sci Data. 2026 Jan 28;13(1):145.

Published In

Sci Data

DOI

EISSN

2052-4463

Publication Date

January 28, 2026

Volume

13

Issue

1

Start / End Page

145

Location

England

Related Subject Headings

  • Skin Pigmentation
  • Prospective Studies
  • Oximetry
  • Humans
  • Electronic Health Records