News

Another Medicare paycut - this one, an average 5.4 percent - is looming for 2009, as well as rule changes affecting the ability of dermatologists to provide diagnostic tests for patients without running afoul of federal physician self-referral and anti-markup prohibitions.

When I enrolled in medical school - what seems like a lifetime ago - I wanted to be akin to the sage and compassionate Marcus Welby, M.D. I wanted to be a pediatrician who takes care of and cures sick children.

The following list details common skin conditions and suggested natural treatments, based on information provided by Helen M. Torok, M.D.

As consumers' demand for environmentally responsible medicines and medical practices has grown, so has their desire for "green" cosmetics, cosmeceuticals and skincare products.

At Nova Medical, the largest primary care practice in Loudoun County, Va., "The process of going green is ongoing," says Jennifer Stokols, M.S., a registered dietitian who heads Nova Medical's green team.

Allergan's proposed new product for stimulating natural growth in eyelashes may unleash a vibrant new cosmetic drug niche market.

As consumers' environmental awareness grows, dermatologists must at least keep pace, experts say. Put more bluntly, adopting environmentally responsible practices can help dermatologists protect both the planet and their bottom lines, they explain.

Chicago - Obagi Medical Products announces in vitro data showing that Obagi-C Rx Serum provided more than 10 times the absorption of vitamin C than the leading competitive product, Skinceuticals, according to Marketwatch.com.

Chicago - Alma Lasers announces Food and Drug Administration (FDA) clearance and availability of the Pixel CO2 OMNIFIT handpiece for skin resurfacing, Marketwatch.com reports.

New York - MacroChem Corporation announces results of a phase 2 clinical trial of EcoNail,a topical antifungal for the treatment of onychomychosis, according to Earthtimes.org.

Emeryville, Calif. - NovaBay Parmaceuticals announces it has successfully developed several formulations of Agonocide compounds for use in dermatology.

Lausanne, Switzerland - Galderma Pharma S.A. announced that Japan’s Health Labor and Welfare has approved Differin(R) Gel 0.1 percent (adapalene).

Napa, Calif. - Stage 4 melanoma survivor Kari Worth, 41, marked her five-year triumph over the disease with a five-day, 76-mile walk, ending with a trip across San Francisco’s Golden Gate Bridge to deliver a bottle of champagne to her oncologist.

Milton Keynes, England - York Pharma has raised £28 million to fund a multi-million pound acquisition of Flammazine and Flammacerium from Solvay, according to BusinessWeekly.co.uk.

National report - The rate of melanoma cases in younger women has increased 50 percent since 1980, but did not increase in younger men, according to a study published in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology.

Evanston, Ill. -The Dermatology Foundation is accepting nominations for the 2008 Clark W. Finnerud and 2008 Practitioner of the Year awards.

Dallas - An analysis of more than 100 patients shows that darker-skinned patients benefit from light therapy to treat morphea and related diseases as much as lighter-skinned patients, according to ScienceDaily.

New York - Thermage, which makes an anti-aging skin tightening device, announced it will buy Reliant Technologies for $87.5 million in stock and cash, according to the Associated Press.

National report - A study shows that intralesional etanercept may provide an effective treatment for keloids, according to TherapeuticsDaily.

National report - The U.S. Food and Drug Administration has approved Evolence to treat moderate-to-severe facial wrinkles and folds, according to maker Johnson and Johnson.

Schaumburg, Ill. - Approximately one million new skin cancer cases will be diagnosed in the United States in 2008, according the the American Academy of Dermatology.

National report - The Skin Cancer Foundation is accepting applications for support of pilot research projects related to skin cancer, according to a press release.

A new study quantifies the significant improvements in safety that plasma skin resurfacing offers versus ablative CO2 laser resurfacing, one of its authors says.

Mario E. LaCouture, M.D., discovered during his residency that the role of dermatology in cancer patients' lives was much greater than just treating skin cancers. He would watch as breast, lung, colon and other cancer patients would complain about the damage that anticancer treatments - especially the new biologics - were doing to their skin. Patients in phase 1 and 2 clinical trials, who had exhausted their treatment options, were having to forgo life-prolonging treatment because of life-altering cutaneous effects, including itching so severe that they could not function or sleep.

Over the last decade, an increasing number of doctors have looked at international approaches to their wealth planning. There are numerous pitfalls for using international planning that can catch naïve doctors. Learn what to do - and what to avoid - in international planning, and about specific tools top attorneys use in their international planning.

As I write this, millions of Americans are straining under the pressures of a fickle, unpredictable economy. Tens of thousands of workers have lost their jobs in recent months, savers are struggling to make sense of the lowest interest rates that some have ever seen, and the stock market has given new meaning to the word "volatility." All of this while gasoline and food prices surge to record highs.

The Mohs surgeon who introduced the technique in Brazil shares practical tips for successful Mohs surgery.

Government reimbursements for dermatologic procedures are shrinking, while the number of cases of skin cancer continue to rise.

As applications for botulinum toxin treatments, fillers, lasers and light sources expand, an expert cautions against overly aggressive treatment.

Treating patients with multiple SCCs requires clearing dermal disease first, then addressing field in situ disease topically; physicians are frequently required to make judgment calls, an expert says.