Acne

Acne is a condition of the oil glands. The oil gland occur on the face, chest and back more than any other area. The reason you have acne is because at puberty, hormones activate and stimulate the oil glands in the skin. Any stressful situation, whether it be lack of sleep, anger, sickness or worry, increase these hormones and therefore can make your acne worse. Most people think chocolate, cokes, nuts, peanuts, greasy foods and excessive amounts of milk will cause acne. In only a very few people does it make acne worse. Avoid these foods if they seem to worsen your acne. The iodine in seafood or vitamins containing kelp often aggravates acne. Acne is usually treated with acne lotions and washes and an antibiotic to take by mouth for pustules and cysts. The object of treating acne is unfortunately not a cure, but only a control. The purpose is to prevent scarring and to improve appearance. Usually, acne eventually stops on its own, but the time it takes varies from person to person. This means you may have to be on acne treatment for as long as you tend to have acne problems, but then can safely stop acne medications once your acne has burned out. Some people only have to take acne medications for several months, others - for several years. Most people can be helped by acne treatment.

Warts

Warts are benign (be-nine) growths caused by a virus which invades only the superficial layer of the skin. Warts are contagious. They usually appear three to eight weeks after exposure to the virus. Some people, having developed an immunity, do not catch the disease, but in other instances, one will find numerous cases in which there are several people in the family with warts. Contagion occurs by direct contact. Some people develop an immunity after contracting warts resulting in spontaneous healing. This is caused by the natural body defense system, but does not occur in all people. Warts can be successfully treated, but in the following locations, they are more resistant to treatment: on the soles of the feet, around and under the nails, in a shaved area of the body or in the genital area. All professional treatment is aimed at destroying the virus. Several types of treatment are used for this, such as excision, acids and freezing. The kind of treatment employed depends on the size, location and abundance of the warts. With any of these methods, several treatments may be required.

Skin Cancer

Skin cancer is the most common cancer in America accounting for approximately one out of three cancers. Unfortunately, skin cancer rates have been steadily increasing over the past several decades. Fortunately, most skin cancers are curable if diagnosed and treated in the early stages. The three common types of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma and melanoma. All three are related to sun damage. Fair-skinned individuals have an increased risk of developing skin cancer. Basal cell carcinoma is the most common skin cancer. Signs of basal cell carcinoma are an open sore taking longer than three weeks to heal, a recurring reddish patch which may be tender, or itch, a smooth circular growth with raised edges and a depressed center, or a pearly nodule. Basal cell carcinoma may be milky in color or a pale mark which resembles a scar. Squamous cell carcinoma often times present as an open sore, red patch, or a thickened raised growth. They may appear similar to a basal cell carcinoma or look like a wart that continually bleeds and scabs. Melanoma is the third and most serious form of skin cancer, and has subtle early signs. Any mole which has an irregular board or irregular coloring should be examined by a physician. An lesion that changes color or shape should also be checked. Chronic itching in a mole is another sign of possible problems. Treatment of skin cancer involved surgical removal of the lesion. Most skin cancers are treated in the physician's office using local anesthetic. The lesion is then examined under the microscope to determine its seriousness, and whether further treatment is needed.

Facial Peels

Peels are particularly effective on women who have had prolonged sun exposure. The exposure causes wrinkling and ages the skin. Glycolic acid peels improve the quality and freshness of the skin, diminish acne and pigmentation marks, and reduces the wrinkles. Glycolic acid is a natural chemical which is safe and effective when used on the skin. Glycolic acid is applied directly onto the face. It works by sloughing off the most superficial skin layers. Our office offers physician strength glycolic acid skin treatments. A series of six peels of gradually increasing concentration are recommended. The peels should be at one to three week intervals. They are comfortable and completed in ten minutes. Makeup can be worn four hours after treatment. The peels usually don't leave marks or redness. Glycolic acid products are successfully used to diminish fine line wrinkles and improve skin tone and texture. It can also reduce hyperpigmentation. After a series of skin peels, generally the skin will be tighter, softer, and have heightened tone and color.

Moles

Moles are composed of cells that have traveled to the skin from the nervous system by the 5th month of fetal life. Many of these cells are capable of producing dark pigment. All moles are felt to be present in the skin at birth, or shortly thereafter, although most darken later. Moles can change from flat to raised any time during life. There is an average of 15 moles on each person. If moles become cancerous, they are called melanomans. Melanoma is a serious type of skin cancer with a tenancy to spread quickly. The deeper the cancer goes into the tissue, the more often it spreads throughout the body. Therefore, having the area checked early is very important because the longer the cancer remains on the skin, the greater tendency it has to invade deeper. There is an increased incidence of melanoma in areas of the body that have had extensive sunlight or a blistering sunburn. The danger signs of a mole becoming cancerous are: increase in size, color change, bleeding, itching, infection, or ulceration. Moles should also be checked if they are in areas of repeated irritation or if pigment spreads onto the surrounding skin. A burning sensation, a pain in a mole, or redness around the mole needs to be checked. Two other signs that show a mole at risk are: a sudden loss color and development of satellite spots around the mole.