News

Philadelphia - According to a new study, the use of the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End-Results (SEER)-based classification system can help identify high-risk patients with thin cutaneous melanomas and thus improve clinical decision-making, Reuters Health reports.

Atlanta - A new study suggests that melanomas detected by dermatologists tend to be smaller and at an earlier stage than those found by non-dermatologists - and that these patients have a higher rate of survival.

Washington - Certain variants in the interleukin 10 (IL-10) promoter region can predict poor outcomes in patients with malignant melanoma, including tumor ulceration and recurrence, suggests research presented at the recent 60th annual meeting of the Society of Surgical Oncology, here.

Albany, N.Y. - Two New York state legislators are co-sponsoring a bill that would require expiration dates on sun-care products.

Berlin - A new vitamin B6 derivative called Panadoxine P may become a commonly used ingredient in cosmetic products in the near future.

South San Francisco, Calif. - Israel’s Ministry of Health has granted approval for biopharmaceutical firm Pain Therapeutics Inc., based here, to begin human testing of a new treatment for metastatic melanoma.

Washington - The child of a soldier just back from Iraq has been hospitalized after developing a reaction to his father’s smallpox vaccination, reports Reuters Health. At press time, the 2-year-old boy was in critical condition, but doctors expressed cautious optimism that he was improving.

Sheffield, England - British researchers report they have identified a means by which to quickly detect the presence of bacteria by using a light device activated by polymer molecules. According to a BBC news report, the technology could have significant application in wound healing.

Alexandria, Va. - There has been a 69 percent increase in the number of women and a 91 increase in the number of men having nonsurgical facial plastic surgery since 2000, the American Academy of Facial Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery (AAFPRS) reports in its annual membership survey.

Washington - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is moving to ban scientists from serving on agency advisory panels if those scientists receive more than $50,000 from drug and medical-device companies.

Dublin, Ireland - The concept that rosacea evolves in stages from flushing (pre-rosacea) to rhinophyma (end-stage disease) is erroneous, as it implies a pathogenic process not yet established by research, according to Frank C. Powell, M.D., in practice at the Regional Center Dermatology, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.

Dublin, Ireland - The concept that rosacea evolves in stages from flushing (pre-rosacea) to rhinophyma (end-stage disease) is erroneous, as it implies a pathogenic process not yet established by research, according to Frank C. Powell, M.D., in practice at the Regional Center Dermatology, Mater Misericordiae University Hospital, Dublin, Ireland.

National report - Dermatologists and other trained medical professionals should oversee use of topical numbing creams, and should use only low concentrations for only short periods of time to ensure the safety of patients, say experts in the field and officials from the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

Dallas - While toxic epidermal necrolysis (TEN) ranks among the most serious conditions that may present in an emergency room, it's far from the only emergent issue a dermatologist may be asked to treat.

Advances in techniques and procedures are making treatments for other pediatric dermatologic conditions more effective.

Washington - One year after iPLEDGE's inception, dermatologists applaud the program's elimination of a 23-day lockout period for male and nonchildbearing female patients who fail to fill isotretinoin prescriptions on time.

National report - Although pharmaceutical giant Merck has suspended its lobbying campaign to make its newly approved vaccine Gardasil mandatory for young girls, many dermatologists firmly believe inoculation should be compulsory - for several reasons.

Dr. Beckett reaches some 2,500 young people each year with the message about sun safety.

Some business sales are structured in a way that provides for the former owner to remain a consultant for periods as long as several years.

Was this transaction done to save taxes or did it have another economic purpose? If there was such a purpose, the transaction stands; if it was only tax-motivated, it fails.

In addition to learning to say 'no' to extra commitments, Dr. Woodall also recommends exercising routinely, eating right and not indulging in drugs, alcohol and other unhealthy habits.

Future interventions that target multiple inhibitory pathways will be the ones most likely to succeed.

It may seem like a heretical statement, but the fact is that the physician is not saving the patient's life by treating actinic keratoses.

Cutaneous metastasis from an internal malignancy is estimated to occur in 1 percent to 9 percent of patients with cancer.

Literature review, best use, techniques for the ruby laser.

Washington - Chemical peels have become a mainstay in cosmetic dermatology practices.

Washington - Dermatologists have a variety of technologies at their disposal for achieving skin rejuvenation, including lasers and light devices.

Folliculitis occurs from wrestlers' and others' close contact and could occur from contaminated mats.

National report - New drug combinations and concentrations loom for teen acne treatment as researchers strive to address as many pathogenic targets as possible while upping the ante on treatment efficacy.

Dr. Witman has prescribed the agents as second-line therapy after a first-line therapy attempt with topical corticosteroids failed, or if potential side effects of topical steroids would make their use contraindicated.