Dermatology: Hair, Nails and Skin Conditions

Definition: Dermatology

Dermatology is defined as the branch of medicine dealing with the hair, nails, skin and its diseases. It is a specialty with both medical and surgical aspects. A dermatologist treats diseases, in the widest sense, and some cosmetic problems of the skin, scalp, hair, and nails.

Main Document

Dermatology is the branch of medicine dealing with the skin and its diseases.

A dermatologist takes care of diseases and cancers of the skin, scalp, hair, and nails. Dermatosis (plural dermatoses), is defined as any disease of the skin, and, while thousands of skin disorders have been described, only a small number account for most visits to the doctor.

Immunodermatology

This is a specialist who specializes in the treatment of immune mediated skin diseases such as lupus, bullous pemphigoid, pemphigus vulgaris, and other immune mediated skin disorders. Specialists in this field often run their own immunopathology labs.

Research shows that a majority of skin diseases are caused by nutrient imbalances within the human body.

Skin disease usually entails specialized diagnostic processes linked to skin conditions, treatments and preventions of various skin diseases, and may involve treatments such as injected, externally applied, and internal medications, a variety of dermatologic surgical procedures, or cosmetic procedures like chemical peels, micro-dermabrasion, and sclerotherapy for conditions such as varicose veins.

Skin Cancer Awareness

Quick Facts: Human Skin

• The skin renews itself every 28 days.
• Skin accounts for about 15% of your body weight.
• Changes in your skin can sometimes signal changes in your overall health.
• Dead skin comprises about a billion tons of dust in the earth's atmosphere.
• Your skin is its thickest on your feet (1.4mm) and thinnest on your eyelids (0.2mm).
• Your skin constantly sheds dead cells, about 30,000 to 40,000 cells every minute! That's nearly 9 lbs. per year!
• The average adult has approximately 21 square feet of skin, which weighs 9 lbs and contains more than 11 miles of blood vessels.
• The average person has about 300 million skin cells. A single square inch of skin has about 19 million cells and up to 300 sweat glands.