How does AI improve skin disease diagnosis. What techniques are used for image segmentation and classification. Can machine learning accurately identify erythema. How does decomposition enhance skin image analysis. What are the performance metrics for AI-based dermatological assessment.

Revolutionary AI Approach to Skin Disease Detection

The field of dermatology is witnessing a remarkable transformation with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI) in disease diagnosis. This article delves into a groundbreaking study that employs AI for the localization and classification of skin diseases, particularly those characterized by erythema. By leveraging advanced image processing techniques and machine learning algorithms, researchers have developed a system that promises to enhance the accuracy and efficiency of dermatological assessments.

The Core Components of the AI System

At the heart of this innovative approach lies a sophisticated workflow that combines image decomposition, segmentation, and classification. The process begins with the original skin image, which undergoes preprocessing to separate its hemoglobin and melanin components. This decomposition step is crucial as it allows the AI to focus on specific aspects of the skin that are most relevant to disease identification.

Following decomposition, the images are fed into a U-Net architecture, a type of convolutional neural network renowned for its effectiveness in biomedical image segmentation. The U-Net generates a segmented output, effectively isolating areas of interest within the skin image.

The segmented regions are then further processed using contour detection and a convex hull algorithm, resulting in precisely cropped images of potential disease sites. These cropped images serve as input for the final stage of the process: classification using EfficientNet, an advanced neural network architecture optimized for both accuracy and efficiency.

Unraveling the Power of Image Segmentation in Dermatology

Image segmentation plays a pivotal role in the accurate identification of skin diseases. This study compared several segmentation methods to determine the most effective approach for dermatological applications.

Comparative Analysis of Segmentation Techniques

The research evaluated four distinct segmentation methods:

• K-means clustering
• Support Vector Machine (SVM)
• U-Net without decomposition
• U-Net with decomposition

Each method was assessed based on its sensitivity, specificity, Dice coefficient, and Hausdorff distance. The results revealed that the U-Net model, particularly when trained with decomposed images, outperformed other methods in terms of sensitivity—a critical metric for detecting potential skin diseases.

Why did the U-Net model excel? The U-Net’s superior performance can be attributed to its ability to learn and utilize contextual information from images, making it more robust to variations in lighting and shading that often confound traditional clustering and classification algorithms.

Elevating Classification Accuracy Through Contextual Segmentation

While segmentation is crucial for localizing skin lesions, the ultimate goal is to accurately classify these regions into specific disease categories. The study explored how the integration of segmentation affects classification accuracy.

Baseline vs. Segmentation-Enhanced Classification

To establish a benchmark, the researchers first classified the original, unsegmented images using EfficientNet. This baseline was then compared to the accuracy achieved when classifying segmented and cropped images.

Interestingly, the initial results showed comparable accuracy between the baseline and segmentation-enhanced models. This parity in performance, coupled with the added benefit of disease localization, demonstrates the value of the segmentation step in the overall diagnostic process.

Refining the Dataset for Improved Accuracy

Recognizing the potential for false positives due to anatomical features resembling erythema (such as lips), the researchers took an additional step. They manually refined the dataset, excluding incorrectly segmented images. This careful curation led to a substantial improvement in classification accuracy.

How significant was the improvement? The refined dataset yielded notably higher accuracy rates across various Top-n metrics, underscoring the importance of data quality in machine learning applications for medical diagnosis.

Quantifying Performance: Metrics that Matter

To provide a comprehensive evaluation of the AI system’s performance, the study employed a range of metrics beyond simple accuracy.

Key Performance Indicators

The following metrics were used to assess the classification model:

• Area Under the Curve (AUC)
• Specificity
• Sensitivity
• F1-score

These weighted average values offer a nuanced view of the model’s performance across different disease categories and prevalence rates.

Why are multiple metrics important? In medical diagnostics, different metrics capture various aspects of a model’s performance. While sensitivity measures the ability to correctly identify positive cases, specificity assesses the accuracy in identifying negatives. The F1-score provides a balanced measure of precision and recall, while AUC offers an aggregate measure of performance across all classification thresholds.

Overcoming Challenges in AI-Driven Dermatology

The development of AI systems for dermatological applications is not without its challenges. This study highlighted several key obstacles and the strategies employed to address them.

Dealing with Image Variability

One of the primary challenges in skin image analysis is the wide variability in lighting conditions, skin tones, and image quality. The study’s use of image decomposition into hemoglobin and melanin components proved instrumental in mitigating these issues.

How does decomposition help? By separating the hemoglobin (associated with erythema) from melanin (responsible for skin color), the AI can focus on disease-relevant features while reducing the impact of individual skin tone variations.

Balancing Sensitivity and Specificity

In medical diagnostics, there’s often a trade-off between sensitivity (catching all potential cases) and specificity (avoiding false positives). The study prioritized sensitivity, aiming to identify as many potential cases as possible, even at the cost of slightly lower specificity.

Is this approach justified? In many medical scenarios, especially in screening applications, high sensitivity is crucial to ensure that potential cases are not missed, even if it means some false positives that can be ruled out in subsequent examinations.

The Future of AI in Dermatology: Possibilities and Considerations

As AI continues to evolve, its potential applications in dermatology are expanding rapidly. This study provides a glimpse into a future where AI could serve as a powerful tool for dermatologists, enhancing their diagnostic capabilities and improving patient care.

Potential Applications

Some promising areas for AI in dermatology include:

• Automated screening of skin cancer
• Assistance in rare disease identification
• Monitoring of chronic skin conditions
• Personalized treatment recommendations

How might AI transform dermatological practice? By providing rapid, objective assessments, AI could help prioritize cases, reduce diagnostic errors, and allow dermatologists to focus on complex cases and patient care.

Ethical and Practical Considerations

As with any AI application in healthcare, there are important considerations to address:

1. Data privacy and security
2. Algorithmic bias and fairness
3. Integration with existing clinical workflows
4. Regulatory approval and validation
5. Ongoing model maintenance and updates

What steps are needed to ensure responsible AI deployment in dermatology? Robust validation studies, diverse and representative datasets, clear guidelines for AI use, and ongoing monitoring and auditing of AI systems will be crucial for their safe and effective implementation.

Advancing Research: Open-Source Contributions and Reproducibility

A noteworthy aspect of this study is its commitment to open science and reproducibility. The researchers have made key components of their system available as open-source implementations.

Available Resources

The following resources have been made publicly accessible:

• U-Net implementation (v0.1.2): https://github.com/qubvel/segmentation_models.pytorch
• EfficientNet implementation (v0.7.0): https://github.com/lukemelas/EfficientNet-PyTorch

Why is open-source important in medical AI research? By sharing implementations, researchers enable others to reproduce results, build upon existing work, and accelerate the pace of innovation in the field. It also promotes transparency and trust in AI systems designed for critical applications like medical diagnosis.

Fostering Collaboration and Innovation

The availability of these resources opens up exciting possibilities for the research community:

• Validation studies across diverse datasets
• Adaptation of the models for other dermatological applications
• Integration with other AI technologies for comprehensive diagnostic systems
• Development of user-friendly interfaces for clinical deployment

How can researchers and developers contribute? By utilizing these open-source implementations, professionals can conduct comparative studies, propose improvements, and develop new applications, all while building on a solid foundation of peer-reviewed research.

From Research to Clinical Practice: Bridging the Gap

While the results of this study are promising, translating research findings into clinical practice involves several additional steps and considerations.

Validation in Clinical Settings

Before AI systems can be widely adopted in dermatology clinics, they must undergo rigorous validation:

1. Prospective studies in diverse clinical environments
2. Comparison with diagnoses from board-certified dermatologists
3. Assessment of impact on clinical decision-making and patient outcomes
4. Evaluation of cost-effectiveness and workflow integration

What challenges might arise in clinical validation? Variability in image capture devices, differences in clinical protocols, and the need for large, diverse patient populations are some of the hurdles that must be addressed in moving from research to practice.

Training and Education

The successful integration of AI in dermatology also depends on proper training and education for healthcare professionals:

• Understanding the capabilities and limitations of AI systems
• Interpreting AI-generated results in the context of clinical judgment
• Ethical considerations in AI-assisted diagnosis
• Communicating AI findings to patients

How can medical education adapt to incorporate AI? Medical schools and continuing education programs will need to develop curricula that blend traditional dermatological knowledge with an understanding of AI technologies and their applications.

The Road Ahead: Challenges and Opportunities in AI-Driven Dermatology

As we look to the future of AI in dermatology, several key areas emerge as both challenges and opportunities for further advancement.

Expanding Disease Coverage

While this study focused on diseases characterized by erythema, the field of dermatology encompasses a vast array of conditions with diverse presentations. Future research directions might include:

• Adapting the AI system for non-erythematous skin conditions
• Developing models for rare and genetic skin disorders
• Creating comprehensive systems capable of differential diagnosis across multiple disease categories

How can AI handle the complexity of dermatological diagnosis? Advanced machine learning techniques, such as few-shot learning and transfer learning, could enable AI systems to recognize a wider range of conditions, even those with limited training data.

Integrating Multiple Data Sources

While image analysis is a powerful tool, the future of AI in dermatology likely lies in the integration of multiple data sources:

• Patient history and demographic information
• Genetic data and biomarkers
• Environmental factors and lifestyle information
• Longitudinal data from wearable devices and health apps

What benefits could multi-modal AI bring to dermatology? By considering a holistic view of the patient, AI systems could provide more accurate diagnoses, predict disease progression, and offer personalized treatment recommendations.

Addressing Bias and Ensuring Equity

As AI systems become more prevalent in healthcare, ensuring fairness and equity across diverse patient populations is paramount. Key considerations include:

• Developing datasets that represent a wide range of skin types and ethnicities
• Implementing algorithms that are robust to variations in skin color and texture
• Conducting regular audits to identify and mitigate potential biases
• Ensuring equitable access to AI-enhanced dermatological care

How can researchers and clinicians collaborate to address these challenges? Interdisciplinary teams involving dermatologists, AI researchers, ethicists, and patient advocates will be crucial in developing AI systems that are both effective and equitable.

In conclusion, the integration of AI in dermatology represents a frontier of immense potential. As research progresses and technologies mature, we can anticipate a future where AI-assisted diagnosis becomes an integral part of dermatological practice, enhancing the ability of clinicians to provide accurate, timely, and personalized care to patients across the globe. The journey from research to widespread clinical adoption will require continued innovation, rigorous validation, and thoughtful implementation, but the potential benefits to patient care and public health are profound.

AI-based localization and classification of skin disease with erythema

Figure 1 shows the schematic flow of our study. We started with the original image. We preprocessed this image by decomposing it into its hemoglobin and melanin constituents. These images were then input to the U-Net to generate the segmented output. We drew contours around each cluster and used a convex hull algorithm to draw rectangles around these clusters and crop them as individual images. These cropped images were used as input to the EfficientNet, which generated a prediction along with the confidence rate.

Figure 1

source implementation of the U-Net (v0.1.2) is available at: https://github.com/qubvel/segmentation_models.pytorch.

Schematic flow. From left to right, the original is first decomposed into hemoglobin and melanin images. All three images are input to the U-Net which outputs a black-and-white mask image. This mask image is used to draw contours each cluster. A convex hull algorithm is applied to crop each cluster. Each cluster is input to the EfficientNet, which generates a prediction alongside the confidence rate. An open-

Table 1 shows the results of the test data for segmentation on our Dermnet dataset. The K-means clustering algorithm showed sub-optimal performance, owing to its limitations with noisy data. The SVM method showed a significant improvement in performance, that was attributed to the advantages of using SVMs to extract information from decomposition, rather than clustering algorithms. Even without the extra information, the U-Net trained without decomposition outperformed the previous two methods in terms of sensitivity. The U-Net model was also trained with decomposition and showed the highest sensitivity rate.

Table 1 Performance metrics for segmentation with dermnet images.

In our results, we focused on the sensitivity metric because our objective was to assess the viability of using CAD with skin images. Although our U-Net model was not as good as the SVM model in terms of the specificity rate, it showed the best sensitivity rate, thus satisfying the objective of our study. In addition, we included the Dice coefficient and Hausdorff distance to demonstrate the performance of our methods with greater transparency. Our method showed clear improvements considering these alternative metrics. A major contributing factor⁷ to the underperformance of other methods is that performance of the SVM algorithm deteriorated when the images contained differences in lighting and shade. The K-means clustering method³ was also affected by the lighting and shade in the images. As our data had a significant mix of shade and lighting, the CNN was able to generalize the data better by learning to use the context of the image.

In any classification problem, it is important to set the baseline performance. We set our baseline to be the accuracy rate of the data without segmentation. The original image was input into the EfficientNet without going through the U-Net to determine the baseline accuracy rate. We compared this to the accuracy rate of the model trained to classify segmented images. Figure 2 shows the accuracy rates for the classification of our Dermnet dataset. We observed similar accuracy in the baseline model with and without contextual segmentation. The performance did not decrease when compared with the baseline. Thus, as we gained knowledge of the location of the disease without degrading the performance, we may say that the classification model was successfully implemented.

Figure 2

source implementation of the EfficientNet (v0.7.0) is available at https://github.com/lukemelas/EfficientNet-PyTorch.

Accuracy rate for classification. The x-axis represents the Top-n accuracy metric, while the y-axis represents accuracy. The blue line is the accuracy of the model trained without segmentation. Images did not enter the U-Net before entering the EfficientNet. The gray line represents the accuracy of the model trained with segmentation. Images were segmented and cropped through the U-Net before entering the EfficientNet. The red line represents the accuracy of the model trained with segmentation and refined data. Images were segmented, cropped, and verified to ensure that segmentation had been done correctly before entering the EfficientNet. An open-

However, we were also aware that the accuracy may have decreased due to false positives caused by areas such as the lips, which have similar characteristics to erythema. Hence, a separate model was trained with refined data, where we went through each image and excluded those that were incorrectly segmented. This improved accuracy substantially, as shown in Figure 2. In addition, Table 2 shows additional metrics of the area under the curve (AUC), specificity, sensitivity, and F1-score. These values are weighted averages according to the number of data contained in each class. The AUC and specificity scores are high across all methods owing to the positive correlation of these metrics with the number of classes in a classification problem. Therefore, the more meaningful metrics in this dataset are the sensitivity and F1-score. The refined segmentation method demonstrated the highest performance considering these metrics, similar to the trend shown with the accuracy metric.

Table 2 Performance metrics for classification with dermnet images.

This was a result of an improved performance when there is a smaller area to search for the disease. Because we segmented only the abnormal areas of the skin, the EfficientNet model showed better performance compared to images with a larger ratio of normal skin. Thus, we can learn about the location of the disease that is present in an image and improve performance by training a CNN model to focus on particular subsections of the images. Figure 3 shows a visual representation of this claim using an implementation of the Grad-CAM method¹¹. Activation, which is the intensity with which a model focuses on an area, is represented on a rainbow colormap. Red represents areas of highest activation, while violet represents areas of lowest activation. When trained with unsegmented data, our model focused on an area larger than that of abnormal skin. The area of activation was highest around the erythema, although there were other areas of high activation. In these cases, the model utilized the shapes of body parts for classification. This decreases performance because skin disease can appear in virtually any part of body and there is a lack of data required to form an association between the probability of a skin disease based on the body part. When trained with contextually segmented data, however, our model correctly focused only on erythema. The area of activation was highest around the erythema, while areas of low activation were demonstrated elsewhere. Not only does this add validity to our reported results, but this is also a justification for the inclusion of the segmentation phase before the classification phase because there were clear improvements in all metrics regarding the use of the U-Net before the EfficientNet.

Figure 3

Grad-CAM results for unsegmented and segmented images in our Dermnet dataset. The top row shows the original input images. The left image shows the unsegmented image and the right image shows the segmented image. The bottom row shows the result of Grad-CAM¹¹. The left image of Grad-CAM for the unsegmented image shows that the EfficientNet model focused on a larger surface other than erythema. The right image of Grad-CAM for the segmented image shows than that the EfficientNet model correctly focused mostly on erythema.

Table 3 shows the results of the test data for segmentation on our three independent dermatoscopic image datasets—ISIC2016¹², ISIC2017¹³, and HAM10000¹⁴. These datasets are some of the few publicly available datasets that had segmentation maps and classification labels. We use these datasets to verify our methods with data from independent sources. One major difference with the dermatoscopic image datasets is that they are obtained using a special dermatoscopic device. This eliminates noise in the form of background and non-skin areas, in addition to limiting the number of disease and fixing the location of skin disease within an image. This was shown to decrease the significance of our method.

Table 3 Performance metrics for segmentation with dermatoscopic datasets.

With the ISIC2016 and ISIC2017 datasets, the performance of the less-complex K-means clustering algorithm and SVM method showed similar trends to that of our Dermnet dataset. The performance was sub-optimal, owing to the noise present in the form of varying skin and lesion colors. With the HAM10000 dataset, however, the K-means clustering algorithm outperformed the SVM method in terms of the specificity and Hausdorff distance. This performance is a result of a more statistically similar training and testing set, as they were user-defined and created after stratifying the labels. Regardless of this, the less complex methods showed sub-optimal performances with all datasets.

Across all three datasets, the U-Net models outperformed previous models in all metrics. One interesting tendency is the small performance discrepancy between the U-Net models with and without decomposition. The U-Net model without decomposition occasionally outperformed the U-Net with decomposition. This was attributed to the skin lesion being mostly fixed at the center of the image. The hemoglobin and melanin constituents aid the U-Net model to ignore areas of non-skin and to focus on areas of skin with abnormal intensities. Therefore, this did not add significant information.

Table 4 shows the results of the test data for classification on the three dermatoscopic image datasets. With the ISIC2016 dataset, the Without Segmentation method showed the highest performance in all metrics. With the ISIC2017 dataset, the Refined Contextual Segmentation method showed the highest performance by a minimal margin. With the HAM10000 dataset, the Without Segmentation method showed the highest performance in all but one category. In short, with dermatoscopic images, models trained without segmentation learned to generalize skin lesions most effectively.

Table 4 Performance metrics for classification with dermatoscopic datasets.

This was a result of an improved performance when the location of the skin lesion is mostly fixed. The segmentation phase aids models to ignore areas of normal skin and to focus on areas of disease. With dermatoscopic images, this information is insignificant, as the location of the disease is static. Figure 4 shows a visual representation of this. The Grad-CAM images show that with both non-segmented and segmented images, the models correctly focused on the skin disease. Because of this, the segmentation phase only decreased the resolution of the image without providing useful information, thus decreasing the performance of the model.

Figure 4

Grad-CAM results for unsegmented and segmented images in the ISIC2017 dataset. For both images of Grad-CAM, the EfficientNet model correctly focused mostly on erythema.

The main contribution of our study is researching the viability of CAD in the field of dermatology. This is achieved through the increase in the classification performance of skin disease images, owing to the increase in performance of segmentation. However, our model is most effective with camera images of skin diseases with erythema, which is a limitation of our study. We chose to focus on camera images and erythema because these images are very accessible, and erythema is one of the most common symptoms of skin disease. In addition, currently we only classify diseases into 18 categories due to the limitations of the data. In the future, we plan to create a more comprehensive skin disease classification model, and this seems to be viable if enough data can be obtained. In addition, we plan to work on a method to help dermatologists with time-series analysis of patients. This seems viable with the accumulation of data through CAD.

First Derm’s new AI app helps users identify skin conditions

A quick Google image search is often the go-to for people when they notice a rash cropping up on their skin. This starts the process of trying to match up their skin condition to the one in the photos. 

But a new app called Skin Image Search by First Derm has just launched in beta today and aims to use artificial intelligence to help people figure out exactly what their skin condition is. 

“In many of these [Google searches] these images are wrongly labeled,” Dr. Alexander Börve, CEO and founder of First Derm, told MobiHealthNews. “We hope that our search will give you a much better understanding of this disease and what you have.”

Users can upload a photo of their skin to the platform. Then the AI will match up the image to possible conditions. Börve describes the technology as a triage device. 

“The AI isn’t as good as replacing a doctor. It is more of a skin image search. It is very good for triaging for example,” Börve said.  “You can also click a link and can read more about [the condition].”

Currently the technology is able to narrow down the condition for users. Right now the platform can identify the condition with 40 percent accuracy. It can narrow down the issue to the top five conditions that it could be with 80 percent accuracy, according to the company. 

But Börve said the accuracy is increasing over time. 

“This is a first result and over time we will get better. Every month the statics I gave you will be better,” Börve said. “Hopefully next month or in two months we will have 60 percent accuracy on one disease and 90 percent of the top five or maybe 80 percent the top three. Our goal is to be 80 percent accurate with one disease and 95 percent accurate with one disease and two differential diagnoses. That is the ultimate goal, and then obviously that we would add more diseases.”

Right now the technology has 250 skin diseases in its data base. But the technology is continuously training using a deep Convolutional Neural Network (CNN) with skin disease images.

The company started out as an on-demand online dermatology app and has collected hundreds of thousand of anonymous, amateur skin disease images that have been used to improve the service and were used to train the CNN, according to a statement. 

In addition to the new app, the company will continue to offer its platform that lets users anonymously take photos of an external skin issue and send them to licensed dermatologist who will respond to inquires within 24 hours of receiving the picture with an assessment of the problem. 

Up next, Börve said the company is embarking on clinical trials for Skin Image Search. 

Stigmatisation and body image impairment in dermatological patients: protocol for an observational multicentre study in 16 European countries

Introduction 

The psychological impact of skin diseases is an issue of increasing concern worldwide. 1–3 Skin diseases are the fourth leading cause of non-fatal disease in the recent Global Burden of Disease Study 2010.3 Most skin conditions are non-fatal and chronic. Globally, the most prevalent conditions are skin infections, acne, pruritus and eczema.3 4 The psychosocial impact of common skin disease is expected to be large worldwide but little research or exploration in this area has been undertaken. Our group has recently demonstrated, in far reaching publications, the psychosocial burden of skin conditions in 13 European countries by documenting the psychological comorbidity and the impairment on sexual life, attachment style and general quality of life in common skin diseases.5–9

We believe that there is a requirement to further explore in different parts of the world aspects of the psychosocial burden of skin disease. This, we believe, will achieve greater knowledge and understanding of the aspects of living with skin disease over time and enable healthcare professionals to target appropriate intervention programmes.

Stigmatisation

Patients with chronic skin disease can display a fear of negative evaluation and perceived stigmatisation. Patients with visible skin lesions are reported to be more likely to have fear of social rejection together with fear of negative evaluation by others either within their peer group or from others. The perceived stigmatisation is best described as experiences of social disapproval, discrediting or devaluation based on an attribute or physical mark.10 Patients with chronic skin diseases regularly report experiences of perceived stigmatisation, for example, others staring at them, receiving negative comments or avoiding physical contact.11–13

Culture, societal and other social influences appear to play a role in this stress experience, based on common misconceptions, for example, that skin diseases are contagious or a consequence of poor hygiene.14 It is known that perceived stigmatisation experiences are common among patients with chronic diseases. 11–13 In addition, perceived stigmatisation is higher when physical and psychological well-being and functioning in daily life is reduced, for example, in patients with chronic skin diseases, such as atopic dermatitis and psoriasis.13 15–17 When considering interindividual differences, research in psoriasis patients indicated that younger patients, those who have no partner, those with a lower educational level as well as patients who may experience higher levels of social inhibition and negative affectivity might be more affected by this experience of perceived stigmatisation.15

Finally, stigmatisation may also affect other areas of functioning other than only the self-reported well-being of the patients. For example, a stigmatisation-related implicit bias regarding the disgust reactions of others has recently been shown in patients with chronic skin conditions of psoriasis.18 A more systematic research of stigmatisation among patient groups can produce an important insight into the possible social and cultural difference of stigmatisation experience in patients with skin diseases. This will enable healthcare professionals to finally develop screening and intervention procedures to better support patients in coping with these stigmatisation experiences.

Body image disorders

Dissatisfaction with the body or the skin is common. Most people are not fully satisfied with their body appearance or their skin but accept and live with the realisation that their body is imperfect. The influence of culture and ethnicity might be important aspects of body satisfaction.

For some, the degree of dissatisfaction is so high that it culminates in a preoccupation with a perceived defect of their body which interferes dramatically with their daily life and routine. This is known as body dysmorphic disorder (BDD). BDD is a recognised psychiatric condition and categorised as part of the obsessive–compulsive and related disorders in the latest edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders.19 The condition occurs in around 2% in the general population in the developed world and recent data suggest that this occurrence could be increasing. 19–22 The prevalence is varying in different patient settings and, among dermatological patients, the prevalence is estimated to be at least 11%.21 23

BDD is a distressing condition which can be connected to any part of the body and often linked to shame. Depression, social anxiety and suicidal ideation are frequently comorbidities. In addition, there is a higher rate of suicide among patients with BDD.24 25

Persons with BDD frequently consult a dermatologist but are rarely seen by a psychiatrist or mental health specialist. Patients with BDD are often dissatisfied with their treatment and ‘doctor shop’. They are convinced that their problem is physical and not mental. Also, patients with BDD consume substantial resources in healthcare systems and are challenging to help.19 Therefore, it is important for the clinicians to understand when the patient is suffering from the condition in order to provide adequate treatment and also to be able to distinguish the BDD condition from the more trivial condition of dissatisfaction with body.

The psychosocial burden of skin disease

The primary objective of the present study is to describe the psychosocial burden of skin diseases by assessing the experience of stigmatisation of patients with common skin disease and by estimating the prevalence of body image disorder in patients with skin disease. The secondary objective is to compare this burden in different countries across Europe.

Methods and analysis

Setting

The study is an observational cross-sectional multicentre study across 16 European countries comparing stigmatisation and body image in patients with skin disease compared with controls. Patients will be recruited from public general dermatological outpatient clinics at each participating centre. The study will be organised following the time table (table 1) and conducted by members of the European Society for Dermatology and Psychiatry. The dermatological departments of the following institutions have signed an agreement to participate: University of Graz (Austria), University of Copenhagen, Roskilde Hospital (Denmark), Brest University (France), Justus Liebig University, Giessen (Germany), Muenster University (Germany), University of Szeged (Hungary), Istituto Dermopatico dell’Immacolata, Rome (Italy), Skopje University (Macedonia), University of Leiden, Radboud University of Nijmegen, University of Amsterdam (Netherlands), University of Stavanger, Innlandet Hospital Trust (Norway), Wroclaw University, University of Rzeszow (Poland), University of Coimbra (Portugal), First Moscow State Medical University, Moscow Scientifica and Practical Centre for Dermatology and Cosmetology (Russia), Alcaniz Hospital, Alcaniz, Department of dermatology, Zaragosa, Hospital of Barbastro, Huesca, Aragon (Spain), Skåne University Hospital, Malmö, Lund University (Sweden), Sisli Etfal Hospital, Istanbul (Turkey), Barts Health National Health Service Trust London, Sheffield University, Cardiff University (UK).

Procedure

Recruitment of cases will take place at the general dermatological outpatient clinic at each centre in each participating country in the same way as described in the previous study.5 From the previous study, we expect that the most common skin diseases will be: psoriasis, non-melanoma skin cancers, infections of the skin, non-classified eczema and acne. Consecutive patients will be invited to participate in the study on one or more random days until the required number of 250 respondents is reached. All patients will be fully briefed by a research assistant and will be accepted onto the study by signing a written consent form. Each patient will be examined by a dermatologist who will record the diagnosis; and, if required any secondary diagnosis will be recorded. The recruitment of 125 controls at each centre will be completed by announcement among the staff in the hospital institution.

Inclusion and exclusion criteria

Eligible patients and controls must be 18 years old or more and able to read and write the language of the questionnaire. Exclusions include patients unable to read the questionnaires in available languages, and, for controls, people with a skin condition under treatment.

Assignment

All consecutive patients on specific days in the general dermatology clinics will be approached. Randomisation is therefore unnecessary for this study design. The drop-out rate will be recorded (noting age and gender) and reasons why they do not wish to participate.

Outcome measures

Clinical assessment of patients

The dermatologist making the diagnosis will objectively evaluate and record International Classification of Disease 10^th revision (ICD-10) diagnose for each condition. The severity will be assessed as ‘mild’, ‘moderate’ or ‘severe’. The presence of other conditions including the following treated comorbidities will be recorded: cardiovascular disease, chronic respiratory disease, diabetes and rheumatological disease. Clinicians will also be required to answer questions on whether signs of depression, anxiety and feelings of dysmorphic concern are present in the patient.

Self-reported measures

A background questionnaire (online supplementary appendix) will be filled in by patients and controls and provide information on sociodemographics including income, education, employment and disease characteristics such as duration and localisation of skin disease. Data on comorbidities, weight and height, presence of pruritus and its characteristics will also be recorded. Data on suicidal ideation will be collected in the same way as the previous study5 with the item ‘Did you ever have suicidal ideation?’ Patients only will give information on severity of their skin condition, age of onset and localisation of the skin disease.

Mood disorders are to be assessed by

The Patient Health Questionnaire-2: a validated questionnaire with two items assessing depression. The General Anxiety Disorder Assessment-2: a validated instrument with two items assessing anxiety. The two scales have solid psychometric properties and are used in different patient populations. 26 They are translated and culturally adapted to many languages (http://www.phqscreeners.com). Both short versions have a range from 0 to 6 and have a cut-off value ≥3 with sensitivity and specificity values about 0.85 and Cronbach’s alpha about 0.83.

Quality of life is to be assessed by

Self-reported Health State: EuroQol-five dimension-Visual Analogue Scale (VAS): a standardised generic instrument assessing general health state9 with a VAS assessing the health state, from ‘0’ to ‘100’ (worst to best imaginable health state). This scale is used in different medical conditions and because of existing population norms is prized by health economists.27 Recently its utility in dermatology was demonstrated in a multicentre study among dermatological patients across Europe.6

Stigmatisation is to be assessed by

Perceived Stigmatisation Questionnaire: a generic instrument with 21 items assessing perceived stigmatisation and social experience in people with visible difference. The good reliability and validity of the scale have been demonstrated among patients with scars.28

Stress is to be assessed by

Perceived Stress Scale29 30: a 10-item questionnaire assessing perceived stress with solid psychometric properties widely used in different settings, translated and cultural adapted to many languages.29 31

BDD is to be assessed by

Dysmorphic Concern Questionnaire: a 7-item scale assessing body image concern that has the advantage that it can be used among patients and controls as well. It has been shown to be a sensitive and specific screening instrument for BDD.32

Proposed analysis

Before the data collection starts, a back-translation process of the questionnaires will be done by each centre in the languages for whom the translation is not available. The back translations will be forwarded to the Statistical Centre (Institute of Medical Psychology, University of Giessen, Germany) to enable a standardised checking procedure for the identical sets of questionnaires. After collection, the data will be checked and entered in an SPSS or Excel database at each site. The final corrected data will be sent to the statistical centre. Data will be merged into a single file and rechecked and cleaned. SPSS V.24 software will be used to analyse the data. All diagnoses will be categorised in groups adapted from a previous study.5 33 The largest groups of skin diseases like psoriasis, acne and atopic dermatitis will be defined. To characterise the study population, we will report numbers and percentages for categorical variables, and mean values with SD for continuous variables.

To compare patients and controls for perceived stigmatisation, t-tests and analyses of covariance (ANCOVAs) will be calculated adjusting for the following potential confounding factors: sociodemographic variables, anxiety, depression, overall health state and perceived stress. To compare the risk for BDDs between the patients and controls, we will use the X² test for dichotomous variables. Multivariate logistic regression models will be tested to study the associations between the main outcome variable ‘risk for BDDs’ and groups (patients/controls). As a first step we will calculate the crude ORs and in the second adjusted OR simultaneously controlling for potential confounding factors (same as for ANCOVAs). The OR will be calculated from the estimated regression coefficients B from the logistic regressions.

Patient and public involvement

In a pilot study, the research questions were discussed with patients and their point of views about stigmatisation were taken into the study design. The Norwegian patient society ‘the Psoriasis and Eczema Forbundet’ (PEF) was involved in a discussion of the study design and fully accepted the proposals of the study group. The society was not involved in the recruitment of the study. We plan to send our results to our patient society, PEF, as well to other patient organisation in the countries who are participating in the study.

The study is not a randomised controlled trial and the questionnaires are routine assessments which normally do not impact subjects apart from the time commitment. We plan to acknowledge the PEF in future publications.

Ethics and dissemination

The study will be conducted in accordance with the Declaration of Helsinki. A study agreement has been signed by all participating colleagues in the study. All eligible patients and controls will be informed verbally and in writing of the purpose of the study, the expected duration and procedure, the right to decline to participate and to withdraw from the research, without any consequences, at any given time once participation has commenced. The results will be disseminated by publication in international peer-reviewed journals and presentations at national and international meetings.

With this innovative study, we will expand the knowledge of the psychosocial burden of common skin diseases in patients from different countries in and outside Europe, and specifically address the burden of stigmatisation of patients with dermatological disorders.

The large scale of this study is a strength, giving a good power to our results, and the study group has a successful provenance in managing this kind of work. Nevertheless, we expect some limitations, for example, the distribution of patients might be different from one centre to another, even though we have aimed to standardise the setting by recruiting from general outpatient clinics. The recruitment of controls might be challenging in some centres but we expect to manage this by recruiting local research assistant who will be supported by the study team.

The results will expand our knowledge on the psychosocial burden of skin disease both at a population and at an individual level. We expect that the findings will have an impact on the clinical management of patients with skin disease, enabling dermatologists to understand uncovered needs of their patients to better plan appropriate healthcare.

DermWeb

DermNetNZ (over 20,000 images, about to relaunch with 50,000 images) – New Zealand based atlas is about to launch a new image gallery with over double the current images. Content can be browsed by skin infections, time of life, disease name, treatment & procedures, and hundreds of topics, with additional content beyond the imagery. Originally launched in 1995, this site continues to evolve and develop over time.

DermNet Case Photo Library (over 8000 images) – Well organized and easy to navigate, DermNet presents a large number of images and allows for their use in live lectures. High resolution images are available for publications upon request.

Dermatology Online Image Atlas – DOAI: Dermatology Online Image Atlas PeDOIA: Pediatric Dermatology Online Image Atlas (over 6800 images) – Search the database for dermatological diagnoses, browse by alphabetical listings, and also select the area of the body for images from that location. A cooperation between the Dept. of Clinical Social Medicine (Univ. of Heidelberg) and the Dept. of Dermatology (Univ. of Erlangen). The database has recently been divided into two sections: DOIA & PeDOIA.

Dermatoweb.net Image Atlas (over 7300 images) – Spanish-based image atlas from The University of Lleida in Catalonia, with a comprehensive listing covering many dermatology diseases and conditions. An additional dermatoscopy image atlas is also available.

Dermatology Atlas (over 8700 images) – Brazilian based atlas with a simple frame-based interface – a list of all images on the left and the images appear on the right.

Hellenic Dermatological Atlas (over 2660 images) - Based in Greece, this atlas is searchable by category of disease, diagnoses, and contributor.

Atlas of Clinical Dermatology (over 3000 images) – Danish site featuring high resolution photos of Dr. Neils Velen organized in 9 subsections of dermatological diagnoses.

Iconotheque Numerique Atlas de Dermatologie

Dermatologic Image Database, at the University of Iowa

Dermatology Atlas at Loyola University (over 230 images)

Skin Cancer and Benign Tumor Image Atlas (over 80 images) – Hosted by Loyola University

Skin Picture Quiz – Identify These Common Skin Conditions on RxList.

com

Images provided by:

1.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

1.2: Medscape.com, Aasi SZ. Dermatologic Diseases and Disorders. In: Pompei P, Murphy JB, eds. Geriatrics Review Syllabus: A Core Curriculum in Geriatric Medicine. 6th edition. New York, NY: American Geriatrics Society; 2006:314. Reprinted with permission.

2.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

2.2: CDC / James Gathany

3.1: iStockPhoto / Ken Roberts

3.2: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

4.1: Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology Klaus Wolff, Richard Allen Johnson, Dick Suurmond Copyright 2005, 2001, 1997, 1993 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights reserved.

4.2: Interactive Medical Media LLC

5.1: “Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology”; Klaus Wolff, Richard Allen Johnson, Dick Suurmond; Copyright 2005, 2001, 1997, 1993 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights reserved.

5.2: Color Atlas of Pediatric Dermatology Samuel Weinberg, Neil S. Prose, Leonard Kristal Copyright 2008, 1998, 1990, 1975, by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

6.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

6.2: &copy 1996-2021 MedicineNet, Inc. All rights reserved.

7.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

7.2: © 2007 Interactive Medical Media LLC. All rights reserved.

8.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

8.2: iStockPhoto / carroteater

9.1: Image reprinted with permission from eMedicine.com, 2010

9.2: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

10.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

10.2: “Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology”; Klaus Wolff, Richard Allen Johnson, Dick Suurmond; Copyright 2005, 2001, 1997, 1993 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights reserved.

11.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

11.2: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

12. 1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

12.2: © Interactive Media LLC

13.1: Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved.

13.2: Color Atlas of Pediatric Dermatology Samuel Weinberg, Neil S. Prose, Leonard Kristal Copyright 2008, 1998, 1990, 1975, by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

14.1: Medscape.com

14.2: Color Atlas of Pediatric Dermatology Samuel Weinberg, Neil S. Prose, Leonard Kristal Copyright 2008, 1998, 1990, 1975, by the McGraw-Hill Companies, Inc. All rights reserved.

15.1: “Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology”; Klaus Wolff, Richard Allen Johnson, Dick Suurmond Copyright 2005, 2001, 1997, 1993 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights reserved.

15.2: “Fitzpatrick’s Color Atlas & Synopsis of Clinical Dermatology”; Klaus Wolff, Richard Allen Johnson, Dick Suurmond Copyright 2005, 2001, 1997, 1993 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights reserved.

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Color Atlas & Synopsis of Pediatric Dermatology, Kay Shou-Mei Kane, Jen Bissonette Ryder, Richard Allen Johnson, Howard P. Baden, Alexander Stratigos Copyright 2002 by The McGraw-Hill Companies. All rights reserved

(PDF) Skin Disease Classification from Image

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Google Announces New AI App To Diagnose Skin Conditions

Visual examination of the mole for the presence of malignant neoplasms. Prevention for detecting … [+] skin cancer and melanoma.

getty

We’ve all probably done it at some point: snapping a photo of a rash or a mole and sending it to a friend or colleague for advice on the “next steps”. But often the “next steps” may include confusion, uncertainty, or just plain fear.

So imagine if AI could guide you to a range of possible diagnoses, and provide you with a more realistic set of possibilities (as opposed to just guessing) on what the skin lesion may actually be.

But Dr. Google has been keenly aware of the need for teledermatology to enhance our lives, and with their data indicating that over ten billion searches annually are made related to skin, hair and nail conditions, the natural progression was to take advantage of the high resolution camera in your smartphone and harness the power of AI to conduct a search of a skin condition that may be often difficult to describe in words alone.

Well, this past Tuesday at the Google’s annual developer conference, the tech giant revealed the fruits of 3 years of labor toward its goal of harnessing the diagnostic power of AI loaded into your smartphone to diagnose common skin conditions. The new app, Derm Assist, in many ways, represents a good start, armed with a C.E. mark as a Class I Medical Device in the E.U., with plans for an ongoing pilot study and launch there later this year.

But I qualify this by saying “start”, because it’s far from a finished product that’s ready for prime time as a “stand alone” diagnostic tool. The take away and most important point to remember—you still need to see your healthcare provider, or a dermatologist for confirmation.

Here’s how it works: After you launch the app, you use your phone’s camera to capture 3 images of the skin condition of concern from different vantage points. The app then asks you some questions about your skin type, the duration of the condition, and any other symptoms that may help to more accurately identify the condition. The app further analyzes this information and searches its database of 288 skin conditions to create a list of possible matching conditions that you can then research further.

And in keeping with its goals, Google is quick to assert that what the app provides you with is not the final diagnosis nor a definitive answer by any means, but a realistic set of possibilities after it has searched more than 288 skin conditions in its database. The thing is that while 288 skin conditions may sound like a lot of images, one might hope that it will be more in the near future —and likely will be—knowing that there are many more than 288 skin conditions that exist.

“The tool is not intended to provide a diagnosis nor be a substitute for medical advice as many conditions require clinician review, in-person examination, or additional testing like a biopsy, Google said in its press release. “Rather we hope it gives you access to authoritative information so you can make a more informed decision about your next step. ”

The app actually emerged from research published last May in the journal Nature Medicine which provided efficacy of using deep learning systems (DLS) to identify common skin conditions that was comparable with the skill of U.S. board certified dermatologists.

And a more recent study in JAMA also provided evidence how non-specialist doctors (primary care physicians and nurse practitioners) can use AI-based technology to increase their ability to identify and differentiate various skin conditions. In the study, 40 non-specialist healthcare providers interpreted (de-identified) images of patients’ skin conditions from a telemedicine dermatology service, identified the condition, and made recommendations such as biopsy or referral to a dermatologist. Each clinician examined over 1,000 patients, and the providers used the AI tool for half of the patients, but didn’t use the AI tool in the other half.

What the researchers found was that the health care providers with the AI-powered tool were significantly more likely to arrive at the same diagnosis as dermatologists, compared to those examining cases without AI assistance. The chances of identifying the correct top condition increased by more than 20% on a relative basis, though the degree of improvement itself varied according to the provider. The take away was that AI allowed the provider to gain confidence in their clinical decisions and did not increase their likelihood to recommend biopsies or referrals to dermatologists as the next step. Of note, the likelihood to recommend biopsies or referrals to dermatologist actually decreased slightly in both categories in their small study

Google has attempted to be inclusive of all skin types in their database, but making that a reality may be a bigger challenge. Google explains that their model “accounts for factors like age, sex, race and skin types — from pale skin that does not tan to brown skin that rarely burns,” and have “developed and fine-tuned our model with de-identified data encompassing around 65,000 images and cases data of diagnosed skin conditions, millions of curated skin concern images and thousands of examples of healthy skin — all across different demographics. ” 

According to reporting from Vice, “the researchers used a training dataset of 64,837 images of 12,399 patients located in two states.” The only issue was that out “of the thousands of skin conditions pictured, only 3.5% came from patients with Fitzpatrick skin types V and VI—those representing brown skin and dark brown or black skin, respectively.” Ninety percent of the database was made up of people with fair skin, darker white skin, or light brown skin, based on the results of the study. One argument is that as a result of “biased sampling”from its available database of images, the app could end up either over-or under-diagnosing people who are non-white.

The enthusiasm for development of such an app is certainly welcome in light of data indicating that over 2 billion people worldwide suffer from dermatologic conditions with a shortage of specialists to keep up with demand. However, empowering patients with such technology is only helpful if is accurate and helps to lead them to the correct diagnosis.

“It’s good to see the roll out of Derm Assist, but we’ll need to track the results to find out if it is providing net benefit, said Eric Topol MD, Founder and Director of the Scripps Research Translational Institute, Professor of Molecular Medicine, Executive Vice President of Scripps Research, and Editor-in-Chief at Medscape. “I suspect it will and we need AI for empowering self-diagnostics, at least screening measures, but we also need validation that it’s effective and not resulting in adverse outcomes such as missing an important diagnosis or inducing unnecessary biopsies.”

Roxana Daneshjou, MD, PhD, a dermatologist at Stanford cautioned in a tweet that while she was a “huge proponent of AI and…enjoy watching the field advance, I do think the Google team’s work has led to advances. But I haven’t seen data that makes me feel comfortable with putting this in the hands of patients or physicians.” As Topol commented, a clinical trial would be helpful. Daneshjou explains that “first, we have no prospective clinical trial in a clinical setting. The one ‘trial’ they reference uses the test set images from the Nature Medicine paper—we known the algorithm will perform well, but we aren’t seeing performance on a new external dataset.”

Daneshjou further raises the issue in another tweet that “from all the PUBICLY published data that we have, this algorithm has a HUGE lack of skin color (Fitz V and VI) in the test set of images used, “ pointing out that there is 0% Fitzpatrick skin type VI in the test set of the original paper. That’s the darkest skin tone.”

But a larger and looming issue with the dataset that Google based their algorithm on relates to labeling of the images. Daneshjou explains in a separate tweet that “the images in the original paper were largely labeled by consensus of dermatologists,” offering that “MOST cutaneous malignancies were not labeled based on biopsy results”— adding that “only 6 of the melanomas in the test set were biopsy-proven.” She further qualified that “the number needed to biopsy for a dermatologist to find a melanoma is about 7. 5, so there are likely many training and testing images labeled as melanoma…that are not melanoma.”

But also important to realize is that there is no FDA approval for this app, and no indication from Google of intent to apply for approval at this time. As Daneshjou points out, “if you think the FDA will protect us, she refers to her recent paper published in Nature Medicine which exposes the “limitations of the evaluation process that can mask vulnerabilities of devices when they are deployed on patients.”

Yet, while the app may be a way to begin the evaluation of a skin lesion, the bottom line for many practicing dermatologists is that an evaluation in an office-based setting is the most definitive and conclusive for patients and provider alike.

“Google’s new AI app can be a helpful starting point for identifying common skin conditions,” said Michele S. Green, MD, a dermatologist in private practice on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, and affiliated with Lenox Hill Hospital. “For patients who may be using the search bar as their first resource, this tool can provide some useful information about dermatologic issues for a variety of skin tones and types.”

“That being said, there is no substitute for having an in-person evaluation done by a board-certified expert in dermatology who can best diagnose and treat your specific skin concerns,” she added. 

But there are also other caveats regarding the value of an in-person evaluation that people may not even realize.

“When patients come in for concerns about a spot on their skin or even a rash, I often find that the spot they are concerned about is benign but other lesions are of concern, even precancer or skin cancer, that they do not notice and would never otherwise point out to me,” said Dr. Doris Day, a dermatologist on the Upper East Side of Manhattan affiliated with NYU Langone Health. “These would be missed, diagnoses would be delayed and patients would suffer in these cases.”

“When I examine a lesion, I use special lighting and I also often also use a tool called a dermatoscope to evaluate the lesion, often from different angles to get the information I need for proper diagnosis—when images are sent, there is no way to get that tactile information,” she added.

“My experience with apps has been that it is important to err on the side of caution, which can lead to recommending biopsy or in-office evaluation more than may be truly needed. The time waiting for those appointments can be very anxiety-provoking for patients,” Day qualified.

“It may also lead people to think they have easy access to information which may lead them to over-use the technology and that can be anxiety provoking as well. They will depend on the device to give them information, this can end up leading to more doctors visits and biopsies than needed. Doctors may feel the need to biopsy something the AI said was of concern, even if their own judgment tells them otherwise, as a form of defensive medicine,” Day further explained.

“Finally, there are many times when my patients come in for evaluation of one thing and we end up discussing other unrelated concerns that end up being even more important for their overall health and well-being. There is a critical aspect to the doctor-patient relationship that is sacred and irreplaceable,” she concluded.

90,000 on the face, head, arms, legs, body. Symptoms, diagnostics, mud therapy, prevention.

Sanatorium Tangier »Sanatorium treatment» Skin treatment »Skin diseases: types, symptoms, diagnosis, treatment

Effective treatment of skin diseases is one of the main goals of modern medicine. Skin diseases not only cause discomfort to the patient, they are very unpleasant from an aesthetic point of view. Redness in open areas of the body, scaling foci and inflamed acne cause not only physical but also emotional discomfort.Modern medicine has hundreds of types of dermatological diseases that have different symptoms and different root causes.

It is also worth noting that skin diseases can develop literally at any age. Allergic dermatitis is a common problem in infants, and adults are increasingly suffering from psoriasis and various types of eczema. One of the most effective methods of dealing with skin diseases is spa treatment.Sea water, brine and healing mud of estuary lakes, sea air saturated with minerals with an optimal level of humidity and healing mineral water allow you to cope with a number of serious diseases, in the fight against which classical medicine is powerless. Such care for the health of the skin is not only effective, but also absolutely safe, since it is based on the use of natural ingredients.

The skin is one of the most important components of the body’s defense system.Violation of the health of the skin can indicate both directly a decrease in its immunity, and a disruption in the work of internal organs and systems. That is why the beginning of treatment should always be preceded by a medical examination and examination by a dermatologist; the doctor can recognize some common diseases even after the usual initial examination.

As in the fight against any other disease, in the treatment of dermatological diseases, it is very important to accurately identify the root cause of the disease.Decreased local and general immunity, bacterial or viral infection, chronic stress, thyroid malfunction, allergic reactions are just some of the risk factors that can contribute to the development of dermatological diseases. It is imperative to treat skin diseases, even if they do not cause much discomfort. Weakened skin is a gateway for a wide range of infectious diseases, as well as for aggressive environmental factors.

Types of skin diseases

In a broad sense, skin diseases can be divided into infectious and non-infectious.In the first case, the disease is certainly associated with the effect on the body of bacteria or viruses, and they can be localized not only directly on the skin, but also in any internal organs. A striking example of this category of diseases is herpes, which “makes its way” in the body through the nerve tissues. Diseases of a non-infectious nature can be divided into the following types:

• diseases of the epidermis;

90,017 dermal diseases;

• diseases of the subcutaneous tissue.

Especially worth noting are fungal skin diseases that do not fit into any of the above categories. The causative agents of such diseases are parasitic fungi, which are a special form of vegetation and have nothing to do with either bacteria or viruses. Some diseases can be caused by animal parasites, for example, various types of ticks. Scabies and head lice, which are especially susceptible to children, are a striking representative of this category.

All skin diseases can also be classified by origin.As noted earlier, fungal parasites provoke a wide range of diseases. They can affect not only the skin, but also the nail plate, as well as hair, this type of disease is one of the most contagious and is easily transmitted from one living organism to another. A similar method of infection is typical for diseases that are caused by skin parasites.

A common dermatological problem is abscesses, in most cases they are caused by bacterial infections.Pustular diseases can be superficial or deep, their most common pathogens are streptococci and staphylococci.

A special type of dermatological diseases are lichens, the causes of which can also be very different. Pink lichen can signal a weakened immune system and often appears after a flu, and some types of lichen can be caused by fungi or bacteria. It is especially worth noting diseases of the skin glands, among which one of the most serious is seborrhea.

Most common dermatological diseases

We all know about some types of skin diseases from childhood, while others are quite rare. Among the diseases that every inhabitant of the planet encounters at least once in his life, it is worth highlighting:

• dermatitis;

90,017 acne;

• acne vulgaris;
• lichen;

90,017 eczema

90,017 herpes;

90,017 papillomas;

• scabies;
• bedsores.

Various factors can contribute to the development of dermatitis, most often skin lesions are provoked by allergic reactions. Dermatitis is also a frequent companion of chronic stress, and many people with chronic depression and neurosis suffer from it. For many years, acne remains a common problem in young people – a reaction of the skin to serious hormonal changes. Many mature people also suffer from acne, the disease is associated with functional disorders of various organs, endocrine disruptions, and also has a pronounced genetic predisposition.

At a young and adult age, there is a high risk of developing acne vulgaris, which are caused by inflammation of the hair follicles. Most often, acne vulgaris provokes hormonal disorders. Lichen remains one of the most well-known contagious diseases. It can be infected not only from another person, but also from animals, the disease affects the upper and middle layers of the skin. Among chronic dermatological diseases, eczema should be especially noted, and among diseases of a viral nature, herpes remains the most common.The human papillomavirus is also becoming more widespread, and among the older generation, bedsores are one of the most common skin ailments.

Acne

Acne is one of the most common inflammatory skin diseases, according to statistics, about 80% of the world’s population is affected by it on average. Most often, the disease occurs in adolescence, in this case it is associated with rapid hormonal changes in the body.However, if hormonal disturbances occur in adulthood, then the disease can persist until old age.

In addition to hormonal activity, among other risk factors for acne, it is worth highlighting a hereditary predisposition, gastrointestinal diseases, overly active adrenal glands, overactive sebaceous glands, chronic stress and stay in poor environmental conditions. The main clinical manifestation of acne is the appearance of elements of a rash of various specificities, which are localized mainly on the skin of the face, in the upper back and chest.These areas contain the most active sebaceous glands, the overwork of which leads to the formation of acne. Even after acne has healed, unaesthetic scars and blemishes may remain on the skin.

Dermatitis

Among skin diseases of an inflammatory nature, it is worth highlighting dermatitis, the causes of this skin lesion can be very different. Traumatic dermatitis can be caused by chemical and thermal burns, hypothermia, or the use of certain medications.Distinguish between X-ray dermatitis (caused by radioactive exposure), as well as parasitic.

The disease is based on an allergic skin reaction, which can be caused by a variety of factors. Chemical and mechanical irritants, ultraviolet radiation, exposure to excessively high or low temperatures, food and drug allergies are just some of the factors that can cause acute or chronic allergic reactions. Dermatitis is characterized by the appearance of inflamed and swollen areas on the skin, the disease can be accompanied by severe itching and burning.In some cases, it can occur with an increase in body temperature, with a serious course of the disease, blisters may appear.

Lichen

The term “lichen” refers to a wide range of dermatological diseases of a wide variety of etiologies. Such diseases are united by clinical signs: the appearance of a small rash on the skin, which does not transform into other lesions and is accompanied by severe itching. Most types of lichen are characterized by the formation of well-defined inflammatory spots on the skin, which, if untreated, can increase.

Weeping lichen is known to many as eczema, and the main causative agent of shingles is the herpes virus. There is also pityriasis (color) lichen, it occurs in the case of a fungal infection. One of the most common types of the disease remains lichen pink, the manifestations of which are inextricably linked with the transferred infectious diseases. Some experts consider it to be caused by a viral infection, which is exacerbated after a serious illness. Ringworm, which is common in stray animals and infectious to humans, also causes a fungal infection.

Herpes

Despite the fact that herpes is a typical viral disease, it is also commonly referred to as a dermatological disease. One of the main manifestations of herpes is the formation of characteristic rashes that can occur both on the skin and on the mucous membranes. Most often, bubbles filled with a clear liquid appear on the lips, herpes can form on the mucous membrane of the eye, as well as on the mucous membrane of the genital organs (genital herpes).

Over time, the bubbles with liquid burst, a rough crust appears in their place, the healing of the affected areas proceeds rather slowly.Herpes is of five different types, and its dermatological manifestations depend on the characteristics of the virus. A type 1 virus is responsible for the appearance of “bubbles” on the lips, and a type 2 virus is considered genital. Herpes type 3 is the causative agent of chickenpox, its main manifestation is the formation of herpes zoster.

One of the most dangerous is the type 4 virus, which is the cause of the development of infectious mogoculosis and often manifests itself as a complication of influenza. Herpes type 5 is called cytomegalovirus and is one of the main causes of cytomegalovirus.Modern medicine also distinguishes 6, 7 and 8 varieties of herpes viruses, which can also be accompanied by the appearance of a sudden rash.

Eczema

Eczema is the most widespread among non-communicable skin diseases. The disease is characterized by the appearance on the skin of foci of serous inflammation, depending on the type of disease, eczema can proceed in different ways. Among the most common causes of the disease are chemical and thermal burns.The disease can occur as a complication of the malfunction of some internal organs.

A high risk of eczema is observed in patients with chronic dysfunction of the gastrointestinal tract, thyroid gland and nervous system. The localization of eczema can be very different, most often it affects the skin of the hands and feet, it can occur on the skin of the neck and head. The disease can be microbial in nature and occur at the sites of abrasions and scratches; the formation of eczema often accompanies allergies and various fungal infections.The specificity of eczema treatment largely depends on its root cause; mud therapy and climatotherapy remain one of the most effective methods of combating the disease.

Acne vulgaris

Acne vulgaris is a common type of acne. Their occurrence is associated with inflammation of the hair follicle, with this skin lesion, larger and more abundant rashes appear than with other forms of acne. The disease can be triggered by hormonal disorders, malfunctioning of the endocrine system, chronic diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, decreased functions of the immune system and chronic stress.

Unlike common forms of acne, acne vulgaris often occurs in adulthood. Most of all, women are susceptible to their development, since their body differs from the male in a more complex hormonal system. Acne vulgaris is extremely difficult to prevent using conventional hygienic methods. After them, unaesthetic scars and spots of a pinkish and bluish tint may persist for many months, due to frequent inflammation of the follicles, the skin simply does not have time to renew itself.The methods of mud therapy and climatotherapy are also considered universal and the most effective for the problem of acne vulgaris. Natural ingredients have anti-inflammatory, disinfecting and regenerating effects.

Pressure sores

Such a problem as bedsores is largely characteristic of older people, but sometimes it also occurs in fairly young people who are prone to certain risk factors. Among dermatological diseases, bedsores are considered one of the most dangerous and serious, the disease is associated with necrosis of soft tissues.The development of pressure ulcers is facilitated by constant pressure on certain areas of soft tissues, as a result of which blood circulation and the functioning of the nervous system are disrupted.

Most often, soft tissue necrosis occurs in bedridden patients, as well as in patients who have been in the intensive care unit for a long time and were fixed in a supine position. The first sign of the formation of a pressure ulcer is skin hyperemia, which does not go away even after the pressure is removed.

It is very important to start the treatment of the disease at this stage in order to avoid destruction of the deeper layers of soft tissues.With bedsores of 3 and 4 degrees, only a surgical method of treatment is possible, during which the affected soft tissues are completely removed. Bedsores on the skin often occur with prolonged wearing of a plaster cast, therefore, in the treatment of a fracture, it is very important to monitor the condition of the skin.

Scabies

One of the most contagious dermatological diseases is scabies, in which case the treatment of the skin is aimed at controlling the scabies mite. This type of parasite is easily transmitted by household contact, therefore scabies is considered to be a “family” disease.If one of the family members has a dermatological disease, then all other household members may also soon feel alarming symptoms.

The main symptom of scabies is severe itching of the skin, which is subsequently complemented by peeling of the affected skin. Itching is caused by a subcutaneous mite that makes its paths in the upper layers of the skin. If the treatment of the disease is not started in the first 4 to 6 weeks, then a rash may appear on the affected areas of the skin, it is evidence of an infectious complication that has begun.

Despite the fact that the disease is very common and extremely unpleasant, its treatment takes place rather quickly and gives a minimum of discomfort. The main means of prevention is adherence to the rules of personal hygiene, especially in cases where there is a need to contact with a large number of people in everyday life.

Keratosis

The term keratosis refers to a wide range of skin diseases, which can be either hereditary or acquired.These diseases are united by the main symptom – keratinization of the skin. It can manifest as scaly patches on the skin, warts and large moles, as well as areas of small rashes. One of the most common types of disease is follicular keratosis, which is associated with too rapid processes of renewal of the epidermis and disruption of the sebaceous glands. The main symptom of this disease is the so-called “goose bumps”, which is most often seen on the arms and legs.

One of the most dangerous types of the disease is actinic keratosis, which is a precursor to skin cancer and develops as a result of exposure to ultraviolet radiation. In older people, the most common is seborrheic keratosis, which is accompanied by the formation of neoplasms of various shapes and sizes on the skin. Human papillomavirus can provoke the development of the disease, and sometimes it develops as a result of natural aging processes of the skin.

Carcinoma

One of the most dangerous skin diseases is carcinoma – one of the most common types of skin cancer.It is important to note that malignant neoplasms can form not only directly on the skin, but also on the mucous membranes, and sometimes they also affect internal organs. Among the risk factors that contribute to the development of carcinoma, it is worth noting the impact of chemical and physical carcinogens, past viral diseases, certain types of radiation, hormonal factors, as well as genetic predisposition.

According to statistics, more than 9.5 million people die from various types of carcinoma in the world every year.In many respects, such unfavorable statistics is due to the fact that skin treatment begins at a late stage, and the early signs of the development of the disease are left without due attention. Among the earliest symptoms of the development of carcinoma, it is worth noting a change in the skin in a certain area, which resembles a slight swelling. Over time, the area of ​​hyperemia may increase, the disease is accompanied by a decrease in body weight, an increase in temperature, unmotivated weakness and a decrease in the level of hemoglobin in the blood.

Hemangioma

Hemangioma occupies a special place among skin diseases that most often occur in infants. It is a benign neoplasm that usually forms in the first month of a child’s life, and in some children, hemangioma can be observed already at birth. The main cause of the disease is the pathological proliferation of blood vessels, due to which a bright red spot is formed on the skin.

The exact cause of the disease is not known, according to some assumptions, the formation of a benign tumor may be preceded by the migration of placental cells into the fetus.Infectious diseases carried by the mother during pregnancy are considered a serious risk factor for the development of hemangioma. Sometimes a tumor can affect not only the superficial layers of the skin, but also deeper tissues, in this case, the process of complete recovery can take several years, and sometimes requires immediate surgical intervention. Mud therapy, which is considered the safest and most effective method of treatment in infancy, can contribute to the early healing of the “birthmark”.

Melanoma

Melanoma is also one of the most dangerous dermatological diseases, since it is one of the types of skin cancer. The main risk factors for the development of the disease are considered genetic predisposition, as well as exposure to natural and artificial ultraviolet radiation. According to statistics, people with fair skin type, blond hair and blue eyes are more susceptible to the formation of melanoma than others. They need to try to avoid intense ultraviolet radiation, sunburn is a serious risk factor for such people.

The first stage of the development of the disease is the formation of age spots, most often they appear on the open areas of the skin of the face, hands and neck. Under the influence of ultraviolet light, age spots can grow and darken, such dynamics indicates the active development of melanoma. A serious risk factor in the development of the disease is age over 50 years, as well as a hereditary predisposition. You should consult a doctor if a feeling of itching and burning appears on the affected skin areas, the color of age spots has changed, and small ulcers appear that are poorly treatable.

Papilloma

Papillomas are one of the most common and aesthetically unpleasant skin lesions. The main symptom of the disease is the appearance of papillary outgrowths on the skin; the causative agent of this disease is the human papillomavirus. Currently, there are more than 170 strains of this virus, which can infect not only the skin, but also the mucous membranes. Some strains of the virus are very dangerous; benign neoplasms formed by them can subsequently degenerate into cancerous tumors.

That is why all people suffering from this disease must undergo a medical examination and find out which strain of the virus is found in the blood. Before starting the treatment of unaesthetic growths on the skin, you must first undergo effective antiviral treatment. If we restrict ourselves only to the removal of papillomas, then later they may appear again. In most cases, the disease does not pose a great risk to life, but its manifestations cannot be ignored, since over the years papillomas can affect the mucous membranes of internal organs.

Dermatomycosis

The term dermatomycosis combines a wide range of fungal diseases that can affect not only the skin, but also the nails, and in some cases even the internal organs. The main causative agents of all these diseases are parasitic microorganisms – fungi, of which there are several hundred species. Depending on the specificity of the parasitic agent, the disease can manifest itself in a variety of symptoms.

The development of diseases of this category is facilitated by many risk factors, among which it is worth noting non-compliance with the rules of personal hygiene, prolonged stay in poorly ventilated rooms, wearing low-quality synthetic clothing, and a decrease in immunity.Public swimming pools, baths and saunas are a serious risk factor for the spread of mycotic infection. One of the main symptoms of dermatomycosis is the appearance on the skin of areas of redness and scaling with a clearly defined edge, which can increase in size over time. Diagnosis of the disease is simple and fairly quick; strengthening of the immune system remains one of the main components of complex treatment.

Erysipelas

Erysipelas remains one of the most famous and widespread infectious skin diseases.The main causative agent of the disease is group A streptococcus, like many other bacterial lesions of the body, erysipelas is acute, symptoms can develop within a few hours. Most of all, people of the older age group are susceptible to the development of the disease; the main symptom of the disease is the appearance of extensive areas of redness on the skin.

The disease is accompanied by a rapid rise in temperature, general weakness, headaches, nausea and vomiting. In the early days of the disease, the affected areas of the skin may experience itching, a burning sensation, as well as excessive sweating and a feeling of tightness.After a while, pronounced swelling appears on the affected skin areas, the skin becomes bright red. Usually, it takes at least ten days to completely cure the disease and restore the skin. The main means of preventing the disease is to control the cleanliness of the skin and observe the rules of personal hygiene.

Causes of skin diseases

As noted above, the reasons why skin diseases can develop are very different. There are a number of viruses and bacteria that are the causative agents of common diseases, and some diseases are provoked by parasitic microorganisms, for example, a fungus.Very often, a violation of the integrity and healthy appearance of the skin is associated with diseases of the internal organs. It can be provoked by a decrease in immunity or the effect of allergic agents on the body.

An important factor in the development of a number of dermatological ailments is the improper functioning of the hormonal system. A great example is teenage acne, which, both young and adult, usually develops in response to severe hormonal disruptions. Only in some cases, the appearance of acne and acne vulgaris can be associated with serious diseases of internal organs and systems, for example, the gastrointestinal tract.

Chronic stress is a common cause of a number of skin diseases and is considered one of the main causes of psoriasis and eczema. Despite the fact that emotional stress is considered a psychological risk factor, they are inextricably linked to changes in the physiology of the body. A number of dermatological diseases also have a genetic predisposition, heredity also remains among the most common causes of the development of diseases.

Body parts prone to dermatological diseases

Skin problems, sadly, arise on absolutely all parts of the human body, from the head to the extremities.Symptoms, causes, methods of prevention and treatment can be both similar and radically different. Moreover, with some problems you can go to a dermatologist, with others to an oncologist, cosmetologist or neurologist. Problems with the skin on the face and other visible parts of the body can also cause psychological problems for the patient, which lead to nervous disorders and low self-esteem. Awareness of the problem is often the most important in the recovery of the sick.

Skin diseases on the face

Rapid treatment of skin diseases on the face remains one of the main tasks of modern medicine, because such diseases are the most uncomfortable from an aesthetic point of view.The presence of inflamed acne, areas of peeling and redness on the face always gives a lot of discomfort, since they cannot be hidden. The most common skin conditions on the face are acne and acne, which are most common during adolescence. In infancy, children may have a hemangioma on their face, which can take several years to fully heal.

Since the skin of the face at any time of the year remains open and is exposed to active exposure to ultraviolet radiation, but it is in this area that melanoma most often develops.With such a serious disease as erysipelas, the skin on the face is also most often affected. Among other dermatological diseases that can appear on the skin of the face, it is definitely worth noting papillomas; in the development of depriving, the skin of the hands and face also remains one of the most common areas. Most dermatological ailments that appear on the skin of the face are relatively easy to diagnose and can be easily cured.

Head

The scalp is very sensitive and contains many hair follicles and sebaceous glands.Some dermatological diseases are localized mainly on this part of the skin, the most common are various types of lichen, fungal infections and psoriasis.

In people who are infected with the human papillomavirus, the manifestations of the disease also often occur on the scalp. Treatment of diseases in this area is largely complicated by the fact that the skin is hidden by the hairline, for some treatment methods it is necessary to get rid of it. Restoring normal hair growth is the most difficult stage of rehabilitation after such treatment.

Body

Since a significant part of the skin on the body during the day is usually hidden by clothing, it is much more difficult for pathogenic bacteria, viruses and fungal infections to infect this area of ​​the skin. Nevertheless, the skin on the body is still affected by a variety of dermatological ailments. Some of the most serious are melanoma and carcinoma, which, with unfavorable dynamics, can degenerate into skin cancer.

Separately, it is worth noting some forms of lichen, in particular, pink lichen.It appears as a reaction of the body to a sharp weakening of immunity, so it can occur literally anywhere on the body. With special attention to the health of the skin, it is worth treating people with moles and papillomas on their bodies. They are not recommended to abuse artificial and natural ultraviolet radiation, it is necessary to carefully monitor the condition and size of all moles and other neoplasms on the skin.

Hand

Every day our hands are in contact with many different surfaces, so it is not surprising that it is the skin of the hands that suffers most from infectious diseases.A striking example is scabies, which in the first stage usually manifests itself precisely on the hands and only then can affect other parts of the body.

Fungal diseases and diseases caused by parasitic microorganisms are the most common for this category. It is also worth noting that post-traumatic eczema is most often found on the hands; it can occur after chemical or thermal burns. The skin of the hands is often affected in psoriasis patients, and in older people, carcinoma can develop on the hands.

On feet

The skin on the legs possesses unique features, it is the most sensitive to diseases of internal organs and is often the first to signal any disturbance in the functioning of the body. So, blue skin on the legs may indicate the development of heart failure, the skin of the feet is often affected during an exacerbation of diabetes mellitus, as well as in various diseases of the kidneys and gastrointestinal tract.

In addition, the skin on the legs is highly susceptible to manifestations of psoriasis, in this case, age over 40 is a big risk factor.Fungal diseases are also often localized on the legs, a high risk of infection in people who often visit the public pool and sports centers.

Diagnostics for dermatological diseases

Correct treatment of dermatological diseases should always begin with a medical examination and examination. Some diseases are relatively easy to diagnose, so they can be identified during the initial examination. To identify the cause of other diseases, a more complex examination may be required, including a number of tests.In addition to general analyzes, dermatologists can take scrapings from affected areas of the skin; checking the condition of internal organs is also an obligatory part of the diagnosis of some diseases.

An indispensable part of modern examination is a biopsy, usually it is carried out when papillomas, large moles and other neoplasms appear on the skin. If you suspect a disease caused by parasites, the doctor may prescribe a culture of a certain type of microflora. In modern dermatology, many innovative techniques are used that allow you to quickly and accurately diagnose even serious and rare diseases.

Skin mud therapy

Mud therapy is considered one of the most effective methods of combating dermatological ailments. It is practiced in many sanatoriums and health centers located near natural mud deposits. Among the main advantages of mud therapy, it is worth noting the versatility, effectiveness and safety, the competent use of natural balm cannot do any harm.

The expressed healing effect is based on the unique composition of the mud, which includes rare chemical compounds and minerals, as well as biologically active components.The mud obtained from each deposit is unique; the estuary mud of the Crimean peninsula is considered one of the most valuable in the world. Due to their complex chemical composition, they have a pronounced antibacterial, anti-inflammatory and regenerating effect.

In the treatment of skin diseases, this effect is invaluable, mud therapy allows you to quickly cope with even complex forms of psoriasis and eczema. Mud applications are used as the main therapeutic procedures for skin diseases, the essence of this procedure is very simple.The mud heated to the required temperature is simply applied to the affected skin area; the average duration of the procedure is 15 minutes. After its completion, the natural balm is simply washed off with plain or mineral water; mud therapy procedures are often combined with water therapy sessions. In the sanatorium “Tangier”, the treatment of skin ailments is carried out with the use of Saki mud, which is considered one of the most valuable in the region.

Prevention of skin diseases

As with most other types of diseases, it is true that skin diseases are much easier to prevent than to cure.Compliance with the rules of personal hygiene, including regular hand washing, will protect against a number of infectious diseases. Those who often visit the pool and gym should use special footwear while staying in public spaces. For the pool, the use of a special cap will also be relevant, which will protect the hair and scalp from fungal infections.

Ultraviolet radiation is a serious risk factor in the development of many skin diseases. For people with light skin type, it is best to refuse frequent visits to the solarium, and in the warm season, try to be in the open sun as little as possible.Such rules of caution will be appropriate for those who have moles and papillomas on the skin. Many skin diseases are transmitted by household contact, including viral and fungal diseases. Timely examination will allow you to easily identify the presence of human papillomavirus or a tendency to form carcinoma, which is largely due to genetics.

Improper lifestyle and bad habits can contribute to the development of acne. In order for the skin to remain healthy even in the presence of serious hormonal changes, you need to follow the principles of a healthy diet, give up alcohol and smoking.Chronic stress is also a common cause of skin ailments; taking care of a stable psycho-emotional state will certainly have a good effect on the condition of the skin.

A detailed video will allow you to see with your own eyes how dermatological diseases are being treated in the Tangier sanatorium. The main medicinal components in this case are healing mud and brine from the estuary of Saki Lake, and in the sanatorium they actively use mineral water from a local source and practice climatotherapy sessions.All procedures last no more than 30 minutes and are carried out completely painlessly, in terms of the way they are organized and carried out, such treatment is more reminiscent of a relaxed spa-style rest. The availability of first-class modern equipment in the sanatorium makes treatment programs as effective and comfortable as possible.

Skin diseases continue to be one of the most common, people are susceptible to them from the moment of birth until old age. Fortunately, among dermatological ailments, there are very few truly dangerous ones that can become life-threatening.However, the course of some diseases is very difficult, causing physical and emotional discomfort. Peeling skin and constant itching, the appearance of red inflamed areas and rashes, unaesthetic acne and papillomas are just some of the troubles that can suddenly darken the life of a modern person.

Dermatological diseases cannot be ignored, even if they do not cause great discomfort, because in some cases the skin signals the onset of a disease of the internal organs.A dermatologist will help you to understand the intricacies of symptoms and accurately diagnose, contacting whom will be the first step on the path to recovery.

Those who cannot overcome skin diseases and are disappointed in the classical methods of healing should definitely try the innovative mud therapy programs. They practically have no contraindications, since they are based on the use of natural natural mud. In the sanatorium “Tangier” everyone can undergo a comprehensive examination, receive consultations from doctors of various specializations, as well as undergo health programs using Saki mud and brine from the estuary lake.

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Skin diseases – MedPortal encyclopedia

Hormones against atopic dermatitis: yes or no

It is known that complex tests are not required to make a diagnosis of “atopic dermatitis” – an experienced doctor only needs to see the clinical picture in order to draw the correct conclusion.Symptoms of atopic dermatitis are usually unambiguous: severe itching and redness of the skin in certain areas of the body, regular exacerbations, and a little later – coarsening of the skin and the development of erosions.

Dos and Don’ts for psoriasis

Successful treatment of psoriasis largely depends on adherence to a dietary regimen, which should be physiologically complete in terms of energy value, fat and carbohydrate content.

Rash

A rash on the skin is a signal from the body about a malfunction of one of the systems.This is not only an unpleasant aesthetic problem, but also a serious reason to think about the state of your health. It is not always possible by external signs to accurately diagnose and understand what caused the rash. We will tell you about the features of some types of rashes and factors that affect the condition of our skin and mucous membranes.

Anticytokine therapy for psoriasis

Modern means and methods of general treatment of patients with psoriasis include photochemotherapy (PCT, PUVA therapy), methotrexate, cyclosporine A, aromatic retinoids, corticosteroids.

Scabies

Despite its bad “reputation” and connection with socially disadvantaged strata of society, scabies occurs in all categories of the population. Even careful adherence to all the rules of personal hygiene will not always be able to protect you from this contagious disease. We will tell you how to identify scabies, what to do if severe itching appears, and how to disinfect a sick person’s clothes and bedding.

Psoriasis: Useful Advice for Patients and Their Relatives

Psoriasis is a non-infectious disease in which scaling and reddish plaques covered with whitish scales appear on the patient’s skin.Modern experts are inclined to believe that this is an autoimmune disease in which the cells of the immune system perceive their own tissues as foreign. Psoriasis can affect not only the skin, but also the joints.

The disease is chronic in nature, and several factors can contribute to exacerbations at once, which both patients and their relatives need to know about in order to ensure timely prevention. What exactly should be done? Let’s figure it out.

Google has developed a technology for determining a dermatological disease from a photo

At the Google I / O developer conference on May 18, the company unveiled technology that can detect dermatological disease from user photos. It is based on artificial intelligence and analysis of 65 thousand images.

Google noted that the technology does not replace medical advice, as it cannot make an accurate diagnosis.Public testing of the instrument is scheduled for late 2021. Users will be prompted to use it through a web application.

The tool will work like this: the user has to take three pictures of problem areas of the skin, hair or nails, and then answer several questions to clarify the diagnosis. For each disease, Google will provide dermatologist-tested recommendations, answers to frequently asked questions from users, and offer similar images on the Internet.

In 2018, Google announced the creation of a neural network based on artificial intelligence technologies that can predict the probability of a patient’s death by analyzing an array of medical indicators. The technology, according to the developers, was able to more accurately (19.9% ​​versus 9.3%) predict the death of a patient with end-stage cancer during a hospital stay than standard hospital programs.

The neural network in the process of its training took into account 175 639 factors, including thanks to the rapid analysis of records in paper medical records of patients previously inaccessible to computer programs.Google’s development can also predict the patient’s recovery.

In mid-September 2019, Google Health also unveiled an algorithm that the developers claim is capable of diagnosing 26 skin conditions with an accuracy of 93%, including acne, psoriasis and melanoma.

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90,000 Skin diseases

The peculiarity of skin diseases is that their presence becomes evident from the earliest stages.In part, this helps the patient – after all, treatment can be started immediately. On the other hand, these diseases give people severe psychological discomfort, especially when it is not possible to quickly eliminate the symptoms. Nevertheless, the diagnosis and treatment of any dermatological disease is a necessary condition for returning to a full life.

Skin pathologies can be divided into infectious and non-infectious. But this division is not always true: for example, seborrheic dermatitis is caused by a fungus that lives on the surface of the epidermis in healthy people, but does not manifest itself without compromising immunity.In addition, infections often join in the midst of the pathological process: patients with psoriasis often have purulent ulcers, which are the result of bacterial skin lesions.

Statistically, the most common group of skin diseases that cause a visit to the doctor are dermatoses and dermatitis – diseases of a non-infectious nature, accompanied by itching, peeling and discoloration of the skin. Similar diseases are observed in children and adults with allergies and immunodeficiencies.

Symptoms

Skin diseases are characterized by pronounced symptoms:

• rash and itching;
• redness and other changes in skin pigmentation;
• by peeling;
• the appearance of ulcers or erosion;
• acne;
• the presence of warts, papillomas;
• painful sensations.

Reasons

Reasons can be completely different, divide them into external and internal. Among the external causes of skin diseases, the main ones can be called:

• climate – extreme cold or exposure to ultraviolet rays;
• injuries – abrasions, tears, cuts;
• infectious skin lesions – fungal, viral, bacterial;
• lack of body hygiene;
• consequences of stress and other disorders.

Internal causes:

• diseases of the digestive system;
• endocrine system disorders;
• immune failures;
• blood diseases;
• diseases of the cardiovascular system;
• allergic reactions;
• violation of intestinal microflora;
• vitamin deficiency.

There are many skin diseases, but the therapeutic principles for each of them are similar: to overcome the disease, a combination of systemic and local therapy is required.The first involves taking pills and injections aimed at eliminating internal pathological mechanisms: suppression of inflammatory and allergic reactions, normalization of the endocrine and nervous systems, and so on. Systemic treatment of each disease has its own characteristics and, as a rule, is prescribed during periods of severe exacerbations. Local therapy is aimed directly at eliminating the symptoms of the disease, reducing the frequency of relapses and improving the patient’s quality of life.Its advantage lies in the absence of systemic side effects, as well as in targeted action.

Prevention of infectious skin diseases. – Gryazinskaya CRH

Prevention of infectious skin diseases.

Infectious skin diseases are always present in human society and can affect people living even in prosperous conditions. Contagious skin diseases are curable. It is only necessary to consult a dermatologist in a timely manner when the first signs of the disease appear!

Pediculosis – a specific parasitism on a person of lice that feed on his blood.The louse is a small wingless insect.

Risk groups for head lice:

The first group – disadvantaged strata of society.

The second group – children of organized groups.

The following complaints and signs indicate lice infestation:

– Itching at the site of a lice bite. Lice saliva irritates the skin and causes severe itching.

– The rash appears a few days after the bite.

-A sick child experiences unpleasant sensations, becomes restless and inattentive.

– The presence of nits in the hair.

– Combs. With a prolonged course of the disease, the child actively scratches the scalp, as a result, crusts form on problem areas.

– Infection can enter the body through scratching. In children, against this background, nonspecific dermatitis often develops.

– Lymph nodes may become inflamed (lymphadenitis)

Persons with head lice found should be examined for possible infection with other types of lice.

If a patient with head lice is identified, work is carried out with his immediate environment in the children’s team, classroom and at home among co-living relatives and neighbors.

Several reasons for ineffective treatment of head lice:

– Wrong diagnosis.

– Re-infection from friends, family members, unprocessed items.

– Failure to comply with the instructions for the pediculicide.

– Neglect to reuse the product 7-10 days after the first application.

Advice for parents:

1. Ask your child not to exchange personal things with other children on the street, in kindergarten, school.
2. Avoid loose hair to reduce contact with objects and other people.
3. Use a rubber cap in the pool.
4. In case of infestation of lice by one of the family members, you must immediately seek medical help to prescribe adequate treatment

Check dry hair for lice and nits:

1. Comb dry hair in good light and check carefully, strand by strand.Remember, lice are almost translucent and move quickly, making them difficult to spot. Nits are easier to find: they are motionless and firmly attached to the hair roots.
2. Check the hair behind the ears and on the back of the head with particular care, as these are the areas where lice and nits are especially common.
3. Wipe the comb with a white cloth after each combing. In case of infection, parasites will be clearly visible on it.

Doctor – epidemiologist D. YakorevYu

Dermatology – BU “Nizhnevartovsk dermatovenerologic dispensary

Dermatology is a field of clinical medicine that studies the structure and function of the skin, mucous membranes, hair and nails, as well as skin diseases, their diagnosis, treatment and prevention.

The skin is the largest organ of the human body visible to the eye. It, as an indicator, shows the state of all systems and organs, being a barrier against the penetration of infections and mechanical influences.At the same time, the skin is at the same time the most vulnerable organ due to direct contact with harmful environmental factors. The impact of external, or exogenous, factors is very diverse. Physical and chemical agents cause inflammatory skin diseases – dermatitis (burns, abrasions, diaper rash, etc.), biological factors lead to fungal skin lesions – mycoses (epidermophytosis, microsporia), pustular diseases – pyoderma (impetigo, furunculosis, hydradenitis), parasitic invasion (head lice, scabies), viral skin lesions (herpes, warts).Features of the structure of the skin, the variety of its functions and the impact of a large number of internal and external factors, cause a variety of skin diseases.

Skin diseases are among the most common human diseases, and almost everyone faces one or another of their manifestations in their life.

Skin diseases are most often the cause of moral suffering, because, unlike other diseases, they have external manifestations.

As a rule, skin diseases indicate any dysfunction of internal organs, unhealthy habits and lifestyle of the patient.Skin diseases, in turn, can lead to serious consequences for the body as a whole, if they are not treated promptly.

When the first signs of skin diseases appear (such as itching, burning, soreness, discoloration and relief of the skin, skin rashes), you should consult a specialist dermatovenerologist. To clarify or confirm the diagnosis in dermatology, additional methods of examining the skin, mucous membranes, hair, nails are widely used: instrumental, laboratory, radiological, special skin tests, etc.

Therapy of skin diseases requires patience from the patient and strict adherence to the treatment algorithm. An important role in successful treatment is played by hygienic care of the affected skin, adherence to diet and drug therapy. Today, with the help of the latest therapeutic and diagnostic techniques, dermatology allows you to achieve a cure for diseases that until recently were considered incurable.

Remember, any disease is easier to prevent than to cure. And any disease is easier to cure at an early stage of development.

90,000 Penis diseases (skin, venereal): photos, causes and treatment

The sexual sphere of a man’s activity largely determines his general condition of the body, is a source of pride, and sometimes a cause of concern. Self-confidence and psycho-emotional balance depend on the health of the male penis. Any diseases of the penis can shake self-esteem, become an obstacle to a happy, fulfilling life.

General symptoms of member disease

Since internal and external factors can cause malfunctions in the reproductive system, a man needs to know the general signs accompanying violations. This will help prevent penile diseases or treat them early.

According to their etiology and nature of the course, such ailments are divided into:

• Pathologies caused by infections;
• Intrauterine malformations;
• Fibrous changes;
• Injury caused by trauma.

Some abnormalities can affect all tissues of an organ, while others affect only some areas. Most often, the head and foreskin are subject to inflammatory and dystrophic processes.

There are manifestations that are characteristic of all possible diseases:

• Skin irritation and redness;
• Swelling of tissues of different parts of the organ;
• Presence of discharge or smegma under the prepuce;
• Disorder of urinary function;
• Cutting, burning, painful sensations during emptying of urine, sexual intercourse or rest;
• Deterioration of sexual function, decreased potency;
• Change in the appearance of manhood – curvature or induration.

If at least one such sign is observed, it is time to be examined by a urologist so as not to miss a serious anomaly.

Symptoms and causes of diseases

Any violations have their roots and typical symptoms: some diseases begin in childhood, and sometimes develop during the formation of the fetus.

Male penis disease can be caused by:

• Heredity. In some cases, this is a genetically determined lack of elastin, which results in phimosis and the associated impossibility of normal exposure of the head.Improper placement of veins can lead to pinching of the penis during arousal;
• Despite the fact that most ailments arise from promiscuity in sexual relations, there are diseases that arise from inflammatory foci already in the body. Bacteria enter the genitals from the kidneys and other organs, provoking sexual and genitourinary dysfunction;
• A significant role in infectious diseases is played by immunity, weakened due to an unhealthy lifestyle, poor nutrition, frequent hypothermia, colds, bad habits;
• Regarding tumors, the pathological process of tissue modification is caused by metabolic disorders – due to the use of steroid drugs, chemotherapy, hormonal instability, and disorders of the endocrine organs.Stressful situations, experiences lead to a similar result;
• Accidents resulting in trauma to the genitals, such as lacerations, bruises and fractures, also do not go away and can be complicated by various disorders.

The origin of diseases naturally manifests itself in characteristic symptoms with general unchanged symptoms.

Non-communicable diseases of the penis

Conventionally, diseases of the penis can be divided into skin, infectious, caused by an internal condition and damage.

• Injuries – fractures, dislocations and pinching, bruises caused by falling, impact, squeezing, as well as injuries, scratches and wounds that violate the integrity of the skin. This can be burns, frostbite and even amputation in accidents. The degree of damage is different, but, as a rule, all problems with the penis are associated with intense pain, the presence of blood in the urine, a violation of normal urination, edema and bruising;
• Phimosis is a common occurrence that affects 90% of boys in early childhood.It is characterized by a narrowing of the preputial cavity, which makes it impossible to open the head. The disease is dangerous by the development of a purulent process, paraphimosis and cancer;
• Congenital anomaly of the penis – short frenulum, which is characterized by poor elasticity of the skin passing from the prepuce to the glans. Because of this, the risk of rupture of the fold during intimacy increases, and the direct contact of the foreskin with the lubricant is disrupted. Although there is no direct threat to health, the presence of pathology brings discomfort and soreness.
• A congenital pathology is a bifurcation of the phallus, but this anatomical defect is rare. The organs are located on top of each other or are located next to each other;
• Inflammation of the outer cover of the organ is quite common and mainly depends on personal hygiene and nutritional deficiencies in the body. It may be accompanied by the presence of a rash, itching and burning, and then it is worth thinking about the more serious causes of the phenomenon and possible infection;
• A rather complex damage is a fracture of the phallus, when there is a violation of the protein tissues of the cavernous bodies.With a quick treatment, you can avoid curvature, scar formation, in severe cases – purulent inflammation, circulatory disorders and sensitivity;
• Peyronie’s disease is a curvature of the penis due to regular injury and the formation of defects in the corpora cavernosa. Chronic heart ailments, hypertension, vascular atherosclerosis, diabetes, alcoholism, the presence of a short urethral canal, and a lack of vitamins and calcium can affect the change in shape. At a progressive stage, the disease manifests itself in a decrease in potency, pain and infertility;
• Priapism is a type of disease that is not associated with natural arousal.An erection occurs suddenly and differs in duration and soreness. Due to the strong pressure in the cavernous bodies, the organ is literally pressed against the abdomen. The danger is blood stasis, which can lead to inflammation and even gangrene. The anomaly has many causes, including chronic ailments and poisoning;
• Inflammation of the corpora cavernosa or cavernitis, in which a seal forms on the male trunk, which can cause swelling, pain, and high temperature.The cause is a urinary tract infection;
• Tumors are of benign and malignant nature, development is activated due to impaired metabolism, hormonal changes, and trauma. At the initial stage, neoplasms do not bother, but they cannot be ignored because of the risk of degeneration into cancer;
• The head and foreskin may be affected by leukoplakia. This is keratinization and thickening of the skin, accompanied by erosion, and sometimes the presence of warts. The disease may be preceded by phimosis and damage, as well as balanitis and balanoposthitis;
• Cancer of the male phallus is quite rare.This is a malignant growth in the form of nodules, papillomas or ulcers deeply embedded in the tissue. The prerequisite for the phenomenon is paraphimosis, balanoposthitis, or infection with the papilloma virus.

Skin diseases of the penis

The most common are all kinds of rashes and irritations of the epithelium of the genitals:

• An unpleasant manifestation is a burning sensation and itching, which can annoy day and night. The reasons should be sought in the progression of syphilis, trichomoniasis, herpes, inflammatory processes of the head;
• If an organ is prone to inflammation, then acne appears on its surface, which are white, pink and red, with or without liquid.Sometimes they merge into a rash and are located anywhere on the genitals and body. Often, rashes are a manifestation of lichen, they have a red, brown and bluish color. The main prerequisite for the appearance is infection;
• Skin diseases of the penis are often pimples that form when the sebaceous glands are overworked and dots are acne that forms as a result of uncleanliness and metabolic disorders;
• White and red spots, which are accompanied by itching or soreness, can be a manifestation of any pathology, especially if they grow and rise above the skin;
• Often, the genital epidermis is exposed to cracks associated with diabetes mellitus, phimosis, early stages of cancer;
• The papilloma virus leaves characteristic sores or warts on the skin.Since they have a long incubation period, recognizing the papilloma quickly presents some difficulty;
• Condylomas (pointed outgrowths) – the result of infection with candidiasis. They are flesh-colored, sometimes with a thin stem. The danger of the disease is that if damaged there is a risk of bleeding and infection;
• Plaque on the head and base of white, as a rule, occurs with candidiasis, venereal lesions, due to insufficient hygiene;
• Ailments such as HPV, seborrheic cyst, molluscum contagiosum form bizarre growths on the surface of the skin, provoking pain, discomfort and the threat of damage;
• With candidiasis balanoposthitis, diabetes and weakened immunity, a fungus is affected, its presence is expressed in pain and the presence of white cheesy discharge;
• Ulcers are almost always an indicator of the latent course of the infectious process; they can grow, change color and shape, and bleed.They occur with a gangrenous form of inflammation, herpes and syphilis.

Skin pathologies are not necessarily preceded by infections and disorders, dermatitis often develops against the background of allergies and blockages of the sebaceous glands.

Member Infectious Diseases

Most male problems stem from an infection of the penis transmitted during intercourse:

• One of the unpleasant misfortunes is syphilis, which provokes such a pathogen as treponema pale.It is characterized by the appearance of red ulcers with a hard bottom at the first stage, later on it is a rash all over the body. In the third stage, syphilis affects the bones, internal organs and the brain;
• Gonorrhea is caused by gram-negative parasites – gonococci and is a purulent inflammation of the mucous tissues. Often, it occurs along with urethritis when infected with mycoplasmas, Trichomonas and chlamydia. Typical signs are burning and itching during sex, urination, as well as various types of discharge with an unpleasant odor;
• Genital herpes is also transmitted sexually and can be troublesome with an itchy rash consisting of small, fluid-filled blisters.It provokes the herpes virus type II;
• Candidiasis begins to progress with a weakened immune system, is characterized by cheesy discharge, the development of edema and hyperemia, impaired urinary function;
• Balanitis and balanoposthitis – inflammation of the head and foreskin, which often affects male dignity. These pathologies have various infectious roots, cause discomfort and pain with any action, are characterized by the release of pus;
• Psoriasis is considered a complex dermatological ailment, the clinical picture is extensive rashes, spots, active peeling of the epidermis on the penis.

Diseases of the male member have a different etiology, but similar symptoms, therefore, a thorough diagnosis is necessary.

Other diseases

There are other diseases of the penis that are not as “popular” as the ones listed, and they can also bring a lot of problems:

• A male organ can have such congenital malformations as hypoplasia (micropenis) – pronounced tissue underdevelopment, and hypospadias – an abnormality of the urethra with an unnatural displacement;
• Oleogranuloma – the systematic formation of infiltrates with subsequent edema, deformation, develops when trying to increase the size of the phallus;
• Fibrous changes when the corpora cavernosa are replaced by connective tissue;
• Severe redness (hyperemia), most often, indicates an inflammatory process;
• Erosion violates the integrity of the mucous tissues and epidermis of the genitals;
• Atherosclerosis and blood clots in the vessels of the genitals are extremely dangerous phenomena;
• The accumulation of large amounts of fluid in the tissues leads to dropsy.

All these cases require attention and timely medical assistance.

Treatment and consequences

The consequences of such pathologies result in severe complications, the result of which can be disability, impotence, infertility and even death, when it comes to a purulent process or damage to internal organs and meninges. In addition, a man develops persistent depression, which can result in mental illness.

In order to prevent complications, it is necessary to immediately contact a urologist, who, if necessary, connects a dermatologist, venereologist and other specialists to the treatment process. After diagnosis, including laboratory studies of biomaterial, bacterial culture, X-ray and other examinations, a suitable treatment is selected. It includes:

• Drug therapy, which consists in taking antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, as well as antihistamines, immunomodulators, vitamins, external antiparasitic drugs;
• Surgical intervention is required for serious indications when other methods are not effective.