Medical Dermatology

Moles are a common condition. By adulthood, most people have between 10 to 40 moles on their body. There are several types of moles and some carry a greater risk of developing into deadly melanoma than others.

When monitoring your moles, use the “ABCDE” method of self-examination:

Asymmetry: One half of the mole does not match the other half.
Border: The border or edges of the mole are ragged, blurred, or irregular.
Color: The mole has different colors, or it has multiple shades of tan, brown, black, blue, white, or red.
Diameter: The diameter of the mole is larger than a pencil eraser.
Elevation/Evolution: The mole becomes elevated (raised off the skin), or the mole is changing.

Mole removal is very common and usually painless. If you or someone you know has a concerning mole, schedule an appointment today to have it evaluated and, if needed, removed.

Eczema (or atopic dermatitis) is a very common skin rash affecting children, adults and the elderly. It is often red, scaly, itchy, and painful. Skin affected with eczema can become more easily infected, therefore it is important to seek treatment.

The impact of eczema causes a decreased quality of life for millions of Americans. There are, however, many new treatments for eczema. These include lightbox treatment and the new biological drug Dupixent.

Allergies can also contribute to eczema and patch testing is available to see if you are allergic to something that you are regularly being exposed to. This testing requires no needles or painful injections.

Call today to schedule an appointment to find if any of these therapies are right for you.

Rosacea is a common inflammatory condition on the face impacting 14 million Americans. Some call it “adult acne.” It causes prolonged and often embarrassing redness on the nose, chin, cheeks, and forehead. If left untreated, it can be damaging to the nose and painful to the eyes.

The cause of rosacea remains to be known. Certain conditions can trigger flares of rosacea including sun exposure, hot beverages, alcohol, chocolate, and spicy foods.

Various therapies are available for the care of rosacea including topical creams and oral medications.

If medical therapies are not enough to treat your rosacea, lasers are available to further improve the appearance of your skin and alleviate the symptoms.

Call today to schedule an appointment to find if any of these therapies are right for you.

Acne is one of the most common skin ailments often affecting teenagers but can persist into adulthood. “Breakouts” consist of pores on the skin becoming clogged and developing into whiteheads, pimples, nodules, cyst, and eventually permanent scarring.

Many treatments are available for treating acne now. It is important to seek help early as, left uncontrolled, acne results in scarring. Therapies range from topical creams, oral antibiotics, Accutane, chemical peels, and lasers. A combination of treatments is often used for optimal outcomes.

Call today to schedule an appointment to find if any of these therapies are right for you.

Angiomas are vascular lesions that often present as a result of normal aging and sun exposure. Birthmarks are similar skin lesions that can occur in approximately 1/200 births. Nevus flammeus (port wine stain) and nevus simplex (stork bite) are common examples of birthmarks.

These vascular lesions can now be treated effectively with laser therapy. A laser known as a pulse-dye laser selectively heats the blood vessels while avoiding damage to the surrounding skin.

The procedure is comfortable without needing anesthesia.

To see if a birthmark or angioma is appropriate for treatment, call today to make an appointment.

Allergic contact dermatitis is a hypersensitivity reaction from exposure to something one comes into contact with in their surroundings. Scientist have named these “delayed hypersensitivity reactions” because they typical flare 24-48 hours after exposure. Due to large amount of various dyes, fragrances, chemicals, soaps, metals, and other allergen we come into contact with, identification of a specific item can be difficult.

People can develop allergies to many items. One can also become allergic to something that previously caused no problems.

To aid in helping patients find what causes their allergic rashes, patch testing was developed.

This is a painless process involving no shots or pricks. A large sticker of possible allergens is applied to the patient’s back on a Monday. The patch test is removed on Wednesday and patient evaluated. They return once more on a Friday for the final and most important part, identification of the “delayed hypersensitivity reactions” that cause the vast majority of allergic rashes.

Specific items from your own home or workplace can also be incorporated into your test to see if they contribute to a rash.

Once identified, avoidance of the allergen in conjunction with topical and oral medications can bring great relief to chronic and stubborn rashes.

Call today for an appointment to see if painless, needle-less, patch allergy testing is right for you.

Shingles is a painful rash with blisters in a localized area. It is due to activation of the varicella virus that also causes chickenpox. The shingles vaccine is available to help prevent this disease. However, those vaccinated can still get this condition. Early treatment with anti-viral medication is important to reduce the risk of developing post-herpetic neuralgia.