March 2013

29 Mar Should You Get A Tattoo?

Posted at 08:00h in Authors, Cosmetic Dermatology, Dr. Derrick Adams, Skin Care Information, Tattoos by Vita Dermatology

Get a tattoo? What could go wrong?

Sometimes I feel like the only person around anymore without a tattoo.

I’ve just never liked anything enough to permanently put it on my body. Tattooing is an art of self and tribal expression that humans have been doing since we developed opposable thumbs.

21 Mar Can Your Smartphone Detect Skin Cancer?

Posted at 22:11h in Authors, Dr. Derrick Adams, Medical Dermatology, Skin Cancer, Skin Care Information by Vita Dermatology

Skin Cancer Phone App

Would you trust a smartphone app to spot your melanoma? Apps do about everything fairly well, so why wouldn’t you?

The Journal of the American Medical Association Dermatology reports that 3 out of the 4 apps designed to detect melanoma fail miserably when put to the test. The three that failed were all based on automatic algorithms. The best score among of these types of apps misidentified a startling 30 percent of melanoma as benign lesions. One program found only 7 percent of confirmed images of melanoma to be rated as “suspicious.” The only app to score well sent the image to a board certified dermatologist who evaluated the image. (No, it was not me and I do not know this individual).

04 Mar Cold Sore Outbreaks

Posted at 23:16h in Authors, Dr. Derrick Adams, Medical Dermatology, Skin Care Information by Vita Dermatology

Avoid Causes And Shorten Cold Sore Outbreaks

You probably have heard by now that the cold sores on your lip are a form of herpes. This is true. While classically not associated with the same strain that causes genital herpes, there are ever increasing rates of crossover infections. In the interest of clarity, I am focusing on lip cold sores today; some people refer to them as fever blisters.