October 15th, 2011 by CynthiaBaileyMD in Health Tips, Research
2 Comments »
Medical science is getting closer to understanding one of the most common causes of chronically itchy arms called brachioradial pruritus.
This means we’re also getting closer to helping people who suffer from this extremely frustrating condition!
A new study exploring the cause of brachioradial pruritus was just reported in the October issue of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology. The authors used MRI imaging to look at the cervical spine of 41 patients suffering from chronic itching of what was otherwise normal appearing skin on the outer surface of their forearms arms (called brachioradial pruritus). MRI imaging showed a very strong correlation between the itch and nerve compression in the patient’s neck. In fact, the exact site of the itch on the skin correlated precisely with the spinal location in the neck where the nerve resides that supplies that part of the arm skin (we call this a dermatome*).
What’s so interesting is that Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Bailey's Skin Care Blog*
October 3rd, 2011 by RyanDuBosar in Research
1 Comment »
Dermatologists spend their days telling patients to avoid the sun and their careers striving to practice in it. They’re leaving the Midwest and mountain states to practice in the southern and western U.S.
To evaluate the migration patterns of dermatologists from residency to clinical practice, researchers reviewed data from the American Academy of Dermatology’s membership database. They looked at 7,067 dermatology residents who completed training before 2005 and were actively practicing in 2009. Results appeared at the September issue of the Archives of Dermatology.
Most graduates from Middle Atlantic and Pacific census divisions relocated Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at ACP Internist*
September 17th, 2011 by CynthiaBaileyMD in Health Tips
No Comments »
It could be a common dry skin rash called pityriasis alba.
With pityriasis alba, the white patches of fine dry scale are usually located on the sides of the cheeks and the outer side of the upper arm. They’re more likely to occur when activities or weather conditions dry out the skin such as swimming in chlorinated pools or with the temperature extremes of a cold and dry winter. They also show up more when skin is tanned because the scaly patches stay white and contrast against the tanned skin. That means that towards the end of summer, they may well be in full bloom if you live in a dry climate.
What is pityriasis alba?
It’s a subtle form of eczema (also called dermatitis). It’s an unusual rash though because there really isn’t much, if any, inflammation. This means the involved skin doesn’t itch, it just looks funny. Most people mistake it for a fungus, which it isn’t. It’s just a form of dry skin eczema.
What treatments will help get rid of the white spots from pityriasis alba? Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Dr. Bailey's Skin Care Blog*
August 18th, 2011 by Jeffrey Benabio, M.D. in Health Tips
No Comments »
Allergic to Swimming? We’re in the dog days of August and summer continues to hold on. What better way is there to relax than in your nice, cool pool? Unless you’re allergic to it, of course.
I had a patient this summer who developed an itchy rash all over. He thought it might be due to his pool, but insisted that he kept it immaculately clean. Ironically, that might have been the trouble.
Some people are allergic to Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at The Dermatology Blog*
July 20th, 2011 by Kay Cahill Allison in Health Tips
3 Comments »
It doesn’t make sense: If sunlight causes cancer, why are human beings so drawn to it, flocking to sunny beaches for vacation time and hoping for sunshine after a rainy spell?
One answer, says David Fisher, chief of dermatology at Harvard-affiliated Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston, may be that humans are literally addicted to sunshine so our skin can make vitamin D. New evidence suggests that we get the same kick out of being in the sun that we get from any addictive substance or behavior. It stimulates the so-called “pleasure center” in the brain and releases a rush of feel-good chemicals like endorphins.
So there may be more than a desire to look good in a tan behind the urge to soak up the sun’s rays. This craving may be a survival mechanism that evolved over thousands of years because humans need vitamin D to survive. Skin makes this crucial vitamin when it is exposed to sunlight. There isn’t much vitamin D in food (except in some of today’s fortified foods) so the human brain rewards us with a rush of pleasure when we seek out the sun and get vitamin D.
Seeking sunshine can be downright dangerous. As Fisher points out, Read more »
*This blog post was originally published at Harvard Health Blog*
