Category: Uncategorized
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Caring for Sensitive Skin: What You Need to Know
Many people describe their skin as “sensitive” — but what does that really mean?Sensitive skin syndrome is a recognised condition where the skin reacts with unpleasant sensations such as stinging, burning, itching, or tingling in response to things that normally shouldn’t cause discomfort. What Can Trigger Sensitive Skin? Sensitive skin doesn’t always have one clear…
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Ask About Acne
In conjunction with June as the Acne Awareness Month, let’s take a look at a few commonly asked questions about acne treatment and skin care. 1.How do I integrate acne treatment into my skin care regime? Topical treatment for acne can range from benzoyl peroxide, antibiotics like clindamycin, to retinoids. A simple mnemonic to remember…
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Dermatology for Dentists
Although Dermatology may seem distant and distinct from the world of Dentistry, there are areas of overlap where patients will require care from both specialties. These conditions include hypersensitivity and drug reactions, psoriasis, lichen planus and pemphigus vulgaris. These notes are meant as an aide memoire for undergraduate dental students during their medical rotation but…
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Reading list for Dermatology
Dermatology is a diverse specialty encompassing more than 3000 conditions and different subspecialties ranging from medical dermatology, cosmetic dermatology, dermatologic surgery, dermatopathology, etc. This diversity lends itself to an interesting and varied daily clinical practice. If you are considering dermatology as your field of practice, you may be wondering about educational resources that may be…
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Chemoprevention in Skin Cancer Medicine
Chemoprevention can be defined as the use of natural or pharmacologic agents to prevent or reverse skin cancer genesis. These medications target pathways brought upon by UV-radiation induced tumorigenesis and intervene in the period following damaging UVR exposure and before the development of skin cancers. Molecular targets include inflammatory cytokines, cyclooxygenase-2 (COX-2), prostanoids, melanocortin one…
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How will my doctor repair my wound during skin cancer surgery?
Removing a skin cancer using surgery (whether Mohs micrographic surgery or local excision) will result in a wound on the skin and/or surrounding structures. Finding the most appropriate way to repair this wound depends on the location of the wound, the availability of spare tissue around the area, any free margins that may be affected…
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4 Principles of Eczema Treatment
Eczema is a common inflammatory skin condition which leads to redness, dryness and flaking of the skin. The damaged skin may also be prone to infections such as impetigo and herpes. I find it useful to frame the treatment of eczema using 4 principles (just like the four legs of a chair, the combination of…
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Spotting the Zebras – Rare Skin Cancers
When I was a first-year medical student, one of our professors asked us during the introductory lectures, “If you see hoofprints on the ground, would you think these were left by horses or zebras?” In terms of clinical reasoning, he further explained that we should always think of more common conditions first a.k.a. the “horses”…
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3 Common Types of Hair Loss
In conjunction with the Hair Loss Awareness Month this August, let’s find out more about 3 common types of hair loss and how to treat these conditions. 1. Androgenetic alopecia Androgenetic alopecia is also known as male pattern hair loss in men and female pattern hair loss in women respectively. It is caused by a…
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Psoriasis 101
August is Psoriasis Awareness Month. Let us learn more about this common condition in this blog post. What is psoriasis? Psoriasis is an inflammatory skin condition which affects 2-3% of people worldwide. What causes psoriasis? Psoriasis is caused by a combination of genetic and environmental factors including triggers such as infections, injury to the skin…
Dr Kwan Zhenli - Dermatology 