#SKIN DEEP ORG SKIN#
Many skin diseases have important implications for quality of life.There are actually dermatologic emergencies, including sudden blistering of the skin and differentiating whether a suddenly-appearing rash is due to an infection, reaction to a drug, or an autoimmune disease (such as lupus).Dermatologists often make the initial diagnosis of sexually-transmitted diseases, all of which have skin manifestations.These include the fingernail pigmentation that indicates arsenic poisoning the dry, scaly skin of hypothyroidism the yellowing of the skin (jaundice) in liver failure rashes that signify underlying systemic disease - for example, the butterfly-shaped facial rash that is found in lupus the red bumps over the skin of the joints typical of dermatomyositis, a rare inflammatory disease of the skin and muscles and the soft-tissue benign tumors that can indicate Cowden’s syndrome, which predisposes to breast, thyroid and uterine cancers and the pinpoint red spots that can be a sign of vasculitis, septicemia, low platelet counts or leukemia. Many infectious and internal diseases have skin signs.They also diagnose skin cancer, and some specialize in the surgical removal of difficult skin cancers. They deal primarily with skin disorders, such as psoriasis, allergic and intrinsic eczema, lupus, acne, and hair and nail disorders. Dermatologists don't only do cosmetic procedures.In spite of the importance and frequency of skin diseases, there are many myths and misconceptions about them and the dermatologists who diagnose and treat them. Moreover, common skin diseases such as psoriasis are associated with serious medical conditions including heart disease and diabetes. The threat of malignant melanoma is well-known, but non-melanoma skin cancer also causes or contributes to significant morbidity and mortality. Skin diseases are often serious, and many can actually be fatal. In Operation Desert Storm in the Persian Gulf, the frequency was 13.9%. Treatment of skin disorders accounted for $75 billion in medical, preventative and prescription and non-prescription drug costs.īecause of the difficulties in maintaining personal hygiene, dermatologic diseases are the scourge of military campaigns. In the southern Pacific during World War II, some 20% of soldiers seeking medical attention suffered from a “dermatologic process,” and during the Vietnam War, 2.2% of all military outpatients had a skin disease. Nearly half of Americans over age 65 have skin diseases, with an average of 2.2 each. Several years ago, one American in four sought treatment for at least one skin ailment, and the average person was treated for 1.6 skin diseases. A corollary is that regular dermatological checkups are a good investment of time and healthcare resources. The reality is that skin diseases are important because they are common, impose a huge economic and psychological burden on patients, and can be serious, even deadly. If you were to ask people who have been to a dermatologist what those medical specialists do, many would probably say something like, “they give you cream for an itchy rash or acne,” or “freeze spots on your skin to remove them.” But the diagnosis and treatment of diseases of the skin - the human body’s largest organ - is both misunderstood and underrated.
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