Clinical Anti-Aging Medicine: Appearance and Anti-Aging Medicine

The phenotype referred to as “appearance” [1] is important in anti-aging medicine for aging evaluation. This is because it is one of the most easily understood phenotypes. Currently, standards for aging evaluation for intervention are being established, and it is an important item in the aging clock. When looking at the correlation with chronological age, recent advancements in image evaluation through machine learning have made it one of the most accurate items (with an error of 2.4 years). The area treated as “appearance” covers a wide range, including not only morphology but also function (Table 78.1). Therefore, the appearance area that people can recognize is evaluated by dividing it into skin, facial features, and body shape (Fig. 78.1). Examples of appearance evaluations when aging include wrinkles, spots, sagging, white hair, hair loss, excessive hair growth in certain areas (such as ear hair or long eyebrows), decrease in height, and changes in body shape. The relationship with chronological age has been clarified for each. (From conventional quantification, image analysis using machine learning is becoming mainstream and is also being used for pre-disease judgment.)