Medical, surgical and cosmetic dermatologists have an important role to play in the management and treatment of wounds, according to an Editorial in Archives of Dermatology, October issue with a special theme on Wound Healing.
Robert S. Kirsner, M.D., Ph.D., University of Miami, explains “Medical conditions as diverse as pemphigus vulgaris, primary syphilis, lupus erythematosus and sarcoidosis all either have or can have wounds as part of their initial presentation. Dermatologists create more wounds through surgical procedures and biopsies than any other specialty. Often, wounds are treated with surgical procedures such as debridement or grafting. Finally, with regard to cosmetic dermatology, its goals and the goals of wound healing are often the same: to fill a defect or contour, to provide dermal support and to normalize regrowth of tissue (epithelialization).”
This issue has a series of articles about various aspects of wounds and their healing, such as a laser system to assess wounds, characteristics that exist in leg ulcers that undermine healing, as well as techniques that reduce the chances of infection due to skin biopsies.
Dr. Kirsner says “This issue allows the Archives to celebrate dermatology’s role in advancing the science of wound care.”
As wounds are common and cost the American health care system dear, these advances will have great benefits.
Archives of Dermatology – Vol. 143 No. 10, October 2007
— Staphylococcus aureus Virulence Factors Associated With Infected Skin Lesions: Influence on the Local Immune Response
— Wound Complications Following Diagnostic Skin Biopsies in Dermatology Inpatients
— Association Between the Use of β-Adrenergic Receptor Agents and the Development of Venous Leg Ulcers
— Physical Activity and Adherence to Compression Therapy in Patients With Venous Leg Ulcers
— Hydroxyurea-Induced Leg Ulcers Treated With a Protease-Modulating Matrix
— Phenylephrine-Induced Microvascular Occlusion Syndrome in a Patient With a Heterozygous Factor V Leiden Mutation
— Consensus Panel Recommendations for Chronic and Acute Wound Dressings
— Dressings for Acute and Chronic Wounds: A Systematic Review
Written by: Christian Nordqvist