Aesthetics

The new guidelines that regulate physicians who prescribe isotretinoin for their patients are demanding and time-consuming.

Pigmented lesions such as caf? au lait spots are also difficult to remove permanently. In fact, a significant percentage of children who are treated with lasers, whether it's YAG or 532 pulsed dye laser, actually get worse.

Although cutaneous melanoma is rare in children, congenital nevi are one of several known risk factors for melanoma.

Dr. Zachary tells Dermatology Times that dermatologists should ask questions of presenters when they hear data presented at medical meetings to determine the clinical benefit of therapeutic interventions.

To begin, ask the patient what they expect. How much downtime do they want: one day, two days, three days or none? Next, select the superficial peeling agent based on what the doctor and the patient are comfortable with.

Las Vegas ? A versatile pulsed light device provides effective skin tightening for today's discriminating patients, according to Stephen Bosniak, M.D.

Dr. Smith points out that collagen products are white and opaque so they can be injected close to the surface without worrying about any visual color abnormality.

Las Vegas ? Sculptra (Dermik) can offer a highly effective restoration of volume, but age plays an important role in how dermatologists should approach their technique of sculpting with the filler, Danny Vleggaar, M.D., says.

New products in the pipeline will add more versatility to fillers, but until they arrive, Dr. Cohen suggests alternatives such as using a 32-gauge needle to fill in etched-in lines in the nasolabial folds and vertical lip lines.

The unit measurement is made by finding out how much of the toxin is lethal to 50 percent of mice in a study. But that amount may vary when new production processes are introduced.

Orlando ? The Baumann Skin Typing System is a multi-dimensional representation of skin types. Using it will save dermatologists time and lead to more effective skin care, Leslie Baumann, M.D., says.

The emphasis on blood vessel quantity over quality might explain why efforts to grow new vessels in patients with ischemic complications by simply supplying cells with VEGF have fared poorly.

Harrison Hot Springs, British Columbia ? There have been many advances in laser technology for medical applications, but for the treatment of pediatric skin diseases, dermatologists are still turning to the "tried-and-true" pulsed dye, Q-switched pigment and CO2 lasers.

The dermatology field's increasing shift toward cosmetic services requires practitioners to examine the relationship among patients, their dermatologists and other participants in the cosmeceutical market, say William P. Coleman III, M.D., and Zoe D. Draelos, M.D., a Dermatology Times editorial adviser, who answered a series of questions on the topic for staff correspondent John Jesitus.

Carefully scrutinized, the evidence does not support an actual malignancy risk.

Hayward, Calif. -- The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given clearance to Thermage Inc. to use its technology for treating wrinkles on parts of the body other than the face.

Scottsdale, Ariz.--With the marketing rights to cosmetic drug Reloxin in a state of flux, Medicis Pharmaceutical is seeking a commercial partnership to market the potential Botox competitor.

This former maximum-security federal penitentiary held such notorious criminals as Al Capone, "Creepy" Carpis and Robert Stroud, the "Birdman of Alcatraz." It was a prison from 1934 to 1963 and reopened in 1972 as a recreation area with a self-guiding trail, cellblock tour, slide show and ranger programs. Wear warm clothes and comfortable shoes. Call (415) 705-5555 for times of departure from Pier 41.

Four key areas to look at when evaluating a billing service are: integration, performance, cost and relationship.

One of the biggest changes in the 2006 CPT book involves the grafting section of the Integumentary System. There were many deletions, a host of new codes and a significant number of amendments to the rules and guidelines that govern these complex surgical procedures.

CTCL can look like atypical eczema or atypical psoriasis and it can be treated as such long before it is accurately identified.

The "vaccine" approach of customizing the intervention to the patient is antithetical to the blockbuster mentality of much of the pharmaceutical industry.

For a great many patients and physicians alike, however, silicone still carries the stigma it acquired after complaints of complications arose from use in breast implants.

The results showed a modest improvement in facial rhytids in the majority of patients, with the maximum improvement in the nasolabial and mesiolabial area seen at three to six months.

Perhaps there is no field in medicine like cosmetic dermatology, where scientific advances appear to run light-years ahead of ethical analyses f those changes.