General    |    0 comments    |    May 31

Skin Care and Travel: Taking Healthy Habits with You

Travel can take a toll and put additional stress on our nerves, but it can also take a toll on our skin health. Whether you are traveling for business or pleasure, skin care should not be neglected; therefore, it is important to get familiar with the impact of travel on skin and how to be proactive while on-the-go.

Beginning your Skin Care Itinerary
Whether your journey is by air, road or rail, it is certain that your skin undergoes changes proving the negative impact of your travel on it. There are many causes that contribute to these negative effects on the skin, in particular the facial skin.  Thus, since the face is exposed to different temperatures in different places, it is of the utmost importance to construct a skincare plan before departing.

Tips While Traveling
= Get skin in “good shape” by practicing a daily skin care routine of washing, exfoliating and moisturizing.
= Drink lots of water to keep your skin hydrated and moisturized.
= Practice relaxation and breathing exercises to handle stress you may feel.
= Wash your face before getting to your place of departure.
= Avoid wearing makeup if possible. Since it is recommended to moisturize during transit, having makeup on may clog pores and cause a breakout.
= Moisturize! Moisturize! Moisturize! The air systems on planes and even trains can be very dry due to the lack of humidity and cabin pressure, therefore consider packing a moisturizing facial mist. These are ideal since you do not have to leave your seat to re-moisturize your face every hour or so.
= Drink MORE water and avoid coffee, alcohol and salt. Teas are also great to drink!

Finally, prepare yourself in advance and take a proper supply of the cosmetics you plan to use. However, if you are flying, keep in mind the airline size restriction.  Make sure you have a one-quart Zip Lock bag and that none of the products inside are over 3.4 ounces.  When packing this bag, make sure to include the two main skin care products:
= Cleanser: Air travel is drying to skin, so choose a non-foaming cleanser or cleansing milk that will not strip needed fats from the skin.  Cleansing wipes are also a good choice.
= Sunscreen/Moisturizer: Sunscreen should be used regardless of climate conditions. A combination of sunscreen/moisturizer will work for most skin types.

Observe Climatic Conditions
It is important to have an idea on the climate conditions of your travel destination in order to take the appropriate skin care products. Cold mountain air will affect your skin differently than the moist salty air at a tropical beach. If you are in a cooler climate, consider bringing a thicker moisturizer and night cream.
If it is a warmer location, you should have sunscreen (with appropriate sun protection factor) to fight the aging effects of UV rays. Additionally, lips can dry and chap in any kind of weather.  It is advisable to avoid wearing longer lasting lipsticks. Moreover, pack medicated lip balm and apply it regularly- even over lipstick to keep lips moisturized and healthy.

Furthermore, bring your own shampoos, soaps and facial cleansers as the ones provided in hotels/resorts may cause a reaction with your skin.  Although it is nice to receive a free bottle of lotion or soap, sometimes these samples are new and untested and can cause breakouts. Therefore, bring a travel sample of your lotion, facial cleanser and body wash to be safe.

Traveling anywhere can be a dirty experience. Therefore, if you choose to carry hand sanitizer make sure it contains aloe or other moisturizing ingredients. Moreover, use a moisturizing hand lotion or cream afterward to help avoid drying hands out (also occurs with hard water or harsh soap).

Undoubtedly, it is difficult to avoid disrupting our normal routine when traveling. Whether it is our diet, exercise regime or sleeping pattern, keeping ‘consistent’ is a challenge, but a worthy one. Our team of skin care professionals at Knoxville Dermatology Group and Medi-Spa at Knoxville Dermatology Group urge you to take this information and stay motivated about skin care wherever you may find yourself traveling this summer.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact Medi-Spa at 865.342.5823 (Knoxville location) or 865.868.4683 (Sevierville location).



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General    |    0 comments    |    May 20

Common Skin Conditions among Women

All women want to put their best skin forward, but it’s hard when you’re coping with varicose veins, age       spots, stretch marks and more. Yet having healthy, naturally glowing skin from head to toe isn’t out of      reach.

Here are a few of the most common skin problems women face. Find out what causes them and the best        ways that you and your skin care professional can fix these trouble spots. Furthermore, come to Medi- Spa at Knoxville Dermatology Group as we offer services that address these skin conditions.

Age or liver spots:

Age or liver spots are really sun spots caused by ultraviolet damage. “Melanocytes – the cells that                   produce melanin, which gives skin its color – get damaged over time and produce more uneven [pigment],” according to the American Academy of Dermatology.

The result?  Spots that pop up on sun-exposed parts of your body.

Skin Suggestion: Try a one-two punch: one product to lighten the skin and another to exfoliate (which helps the ingredients sink in).

Consider incorporating chemical peels and/or microdermabrasion in your skin care regime; they use tiny rough grains to buff the skin and slough away dead skin cells.

For stubborn, dark age spots, try intense pulsed light (IPL) laser treatments to lighten them. However, 3-4 sessions with an experienced dermatologist/skin care professional may be necessary to achieve desired results.After treatments, use sunscreen religiously; it’s the best way to prevent age spots in the first place.

Spider and varicose veins
Spider and varicose veins occur when veins have valves that prevent blood from flowing backward. When the valves weaken, they allow blood to flow backward and pool, causing the bulges.Varicose veins are often blue, appear twisted and stick out from the skin’s surface. Spider veins are often red or blue, small and look like branches right under the skin. Both tend to crop up in the legs; spider veins occasionally appear on the face.

They’re caused by heredity, sun damage, hormonal changes (such as pregnancy) or adult rosacea according to the American Academy of Dermatology.

Skin Suggestion: Non-invasive laser technology can erase facial spider veins, which are dilated blood vessels. The treatment requires about three sessions spaced a month apart. It will cause redness for a few days.

Sclerotherapy is the gold standard for treating varicose veins. After assessing the vein through an ultrasound, a physician injects an agent, such as glycerin, into the varicose vein. This causes the vein to immediately shrink and dissolve over a period of weeks.  A series of three injections are needed. You’ll also have to wear support stockings for a week after each treatment.

Dermatologists recommend regular exercise to improve leg strength and circulation. Additionally, they say don’t cross your legs while sitting and don’t stand in one place for long periods.

Stretch marks
Stretch marks are a result of rapid weight gain (e.g. during pregnancy). Weight loss stretches the skin to the point of breaking, just like a rubber band that loses its elasticity. The result?  Pinkish, reddish or purplish grooves that appear on breasts, hips, stomach, and/or rear.

Skin Suggestion: Stretch marks are best treated when they’re fresh and still red. Moisturizing makes the skin more pliable and helps reduce the appearance of stretch marks. Prescription retinoid cream, such as Retin-A, is effective too.

Rosacea
The cause of this skin condition isn’t known, but it can show itself in several ways: facial flushing (including redness on the cheeks and nose), acne-like bumps, small, dilated blood vessels near the skin’s surface, and swollen bumps along the nose and eyes.

Skin Suggestion: Use cleansers and moisturizers with anti-inflammatory properties to alleviate redness.

Interestingly, caffeine helps to close dilated blood vessels that bring on flushing, so drinking coffee could be beneficial. Also steer clear of rosacea triggers: Avoid the sun (and always apply sun block), hot and cold temperatures, spicy foods and alcoholic drinks. For moderate to severe cases of rosacea, try daily topical treatments or oral antibiotics to reduce inflammation and pimple-like bumps.

IPL laser treatments can zap visible blood vessels and facial redness in one to five sessions, depending on the condition’s severity.

Ingrown hairs

The culprit is shaving and waxing. Shaving cuts hairs to a sharp point. When it starts to grow in, the hair shaft pierces the skin surrounding the follicle. In other cases, it curls and grows back into the skin rather than breaking through it.

As with acne, bacteria can infect it, causing soreness, redness and pus.
Skin Suggestion: Put down the tweezers and instead slough off the top layer of skin to free trapped hair. Here’s how:

  • First, wet a washcloth in hot water, wring it out and apply the warm compress to the ingrown hair. This softens the skin so the hair can work its way through it.
  • If that doesn’t work, gently exfoliate the area with a soft loofah while showering or apply a chemical exfoliate, such as alpha hydroxy acid or salicylic acid, twice a day.
  • If the area is inflamed and has pus, dab on benzoyl peroxide to kill the bacteria, just as you would with a pimple.

In the future, consider laser hair removal treatments since they remove unwanted hair in about two to three sessions. Moreover, it is less likely to cause ingrown hairs.
DON’T FORGET for a LIMITED TIME ONLY you can enjoy our duo laser hair removal special which includes underarms and bikini. Save $416 on a package of 5 sessions (Regular Price: $1,316)! Check out our May Medi-Money for more specials!

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact us at 865.342.5823(Knoxville location) or 865.868.4683 (Sevierville location).



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General    |    0 comments    |    May 11

What You Should Know about Melanoma and Skin Cancer

Since May is “Melanoma/Skin Cancer Detection and Prevention Month,” Essential Beauty will be posting a series of articles to explore this topic in-depth.  The first line of defense against skin cancer is prevention and since knowledge is our most powerful weapon Medi-Spa at Knoxville Dermatology Group hopes you use this as a resource to answer dermatologic questions as well as increase awareness about skin diseases such as melanoma and skin cancer.

Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. The two most common types, called basal cell and squamous cell carcinomas, are highly curable. But melanoma, the third most common skin cancer, is more dangerous.

Who Can Get Skin Cancer?
Anyone can get skin cancer, but some things put you at higher risk, like having—

  • A lighter natural skin color.
  • A personal history of skin cancer.
  • A family history of melanoma.
  • Exposure to the sun through work and play.
  • A history of sunburns early in life.
  • Skin that burns, freckles, reddens easily, or becomes painful in the sun.
  • Blue or green eyes.
  • Naturally blond or red hair.

RISK FACTORS
Ultraviolet (UV) Light

Ultraviolet (UV) rays are an invisible kind of radiation that comes from the sun, tanning beds, and sunlamps. UV rays can penetrate and change skin cells.

As found on the Skin Cancer Foundation website, the three types of UV rays are ultraviolet A (UVA), ultraviolet B (UVB), and ultraviolet C (UVC)—

  • UVA is the most common kind of sunlight at the earth’s surface, and reaches beyond the top layer of human skin. Scientists believe that UVA rays can damage connective tissue and increase a person’s risk of skin cancer.
  • Most UVB rays are absorbed by the ozone layer, so they are less common at the earth’s surface than UVA rays. UVB rays don’t reach as far into the skin as UVA rays, but they can still be damaging.
  • UVC rays are very dangerous, but they are absorbed by the ozone layer and do not reach the ground.

Too much exposure to UV rays can change skin texture, cause the skin to age prematurely, and can lead to skin cancer. UV rays also have been linked to eye conditions such as cataracts.

UV Index

Developed by The National Weather Service and the Environmental Protection Agency, the UV Index lets you know how much caution you should take when working, playing, or exercising outdoors.

The UV Index predicts exposure levels on a 1–15 scale; higher levels indicate a higher risk of overexposure. Calculated on a next-day basis for dozens of cities across the United States, the UV Index takes into account clouds and other local conditions that affect the amount of UV rays reaching the ground.

Tanning and Burning
When ultraviolet (UV) rays reach the skin’s inner layer, the skin makes more melanin. Melanin is the pigment that colors the skin. It moves toward the outer layers of the skin and becomes visible as a tan.

A tan does not indicate good health. A tan is a response to injury, because skin cells signal that they have been hurt by the sun’s UV rays by producing more pigment.

People burn or tan depending on their skin type, the time of year, and the amount of time they have spent in the sun. According to the American Academy of Dermatology, the six types of skin, based on how likely it is to tan or burn, are—

  • I: Always burns, never tans, sensitive to sun exposure.
  • II: Burns easily, tans minimally.
  • III: Burns moderately, tans gradually to light brown.
  • IV: Burns minimally, always tans well to moderately brown.
  • V: Rarely burns, tans profusely to dark.
  • VI: Never burns, deeply pigmented, least sensitive.

Although everyone’s skin can be damaged by too much sunlight, people with skin types I and II are at the highest risk.

SIGNS & SYMPTOMS

Warning Signs: The ABCDEs of Melanoma

Moles, brown spots and growths on the skin are not always harmless. Anyone who has more than 100 moles is at greater risk for melanoma. The first signs can appear in one or more atypical moles. That’s why it’s so important to get to know your skin and to recognize any changes in the moles on your body. Look for the ABCDE signs of melanoma, and if you see one or more, make an appointment with a physician immediately.

Asymmetry: The mole is asymmetrical or uneven.
Border: The borders of an early melanoma are uneven and edges may be scalloped.
Color: A variety of colors is a strong warning. Different shades of brown, tan or black
could appear; Melanoma may also become red, blue or another color.

Diameter: Melanomas usually are larger in diameter than the size of an eraser on a pencil (1/4 inch or 6 mm), but they may sometimes be smaller when first detected.

Evolving: Any change — in size, shape, color, elevation, or another trait, or any new symptom such as bleeding, itching or crusting — points to danger.

According to the Skin Cancer Foundation, the ABCDE rule helps detect many melanomas but some melanomas do not exhibit the ABCDE features. Recently, several melanoma specialists developed a new method of sight detection for skin lesions that could prove to be melanomas. This method is based on the concept that these melanomas look different – they are “ugly ducklings” – compared to surrounding moles. The premise is that the patient’s “normal” moles resemble each other, like siblings, while the potential melanoma is an “outlier,” a lesion that, at a given moment in time, looks or feels different than the patient’s other moles, or that over time, changes differently than the patient’s other moles. The “ugly duckling” methodology may be especially useful in the detection of nodular melanoma, a dangerous type of melanoma, which notoriously lacks the classic ABCDE signs.

Thus, during skin self-examination and professional examination, patients and physicians should be looking for lesions that manifest the ABCDE’s, AND for lesions that look different compared to surrounding moles. An approach combining the ABCDEs and the “Ugly Duckling” technique should improve the chances of early detection of all types of melanoma.

TREATMENT

MOHS Surgery

Mohs Surgery is used for most common types of skin cancers, namely basal and squamous cell cancers.

Since 1971, Knoxville Dermatology Group prides itself in the quality and variety of services its Board Certified dermatologists provide to their patients. In particular, the MOHS procedure is performed in our state-of-the-art MOHS Surgery Center.

The American Society of Mohs Surgery describes Mohs Surgery as the “surgical procedure of removing skin cancer and other malignancies followed by a microscopic examination of excised tissue to ensure the malignant tissue has been completely removed.”  After the first layer of cancerous tissue is removed by the physician, a corresponding diagram is drawn to “ensure proper orientation on the patient,” and the technician “sections and stains the tissue to prepare a microscope slide.” Afterward, the physician studies the slide to determine which “margins” are still cancerous.  Once the lesion and all cancerous “roots” have been removed, the physician closes the “surgical defect.”

In other words, the main goal is to remove the skin cancer without leaving a noticeable scar and preserve healthy tissue.

According to the American College of Mohs Surgery, there is a very low chance that skin cancer will recur following the procedure. Cure rates have been reported as high as 96%-99%.

Prompt action is your best protection.

Preventing Skin Cancer
Take precautions against sun exposure every day of the year, especially during midday hours (10:00 a.m.–4:00 p.m.), when UV rays are strongest and do the most damage. UV rays can reach you on overcast days as well as reflect off of surfaces like water, cement, sand, and snow.

  • Seek shade, especially during midday hours.
  • Cover up with clothing to protect exposed skin.
  • Wear a hat with a wide brim to shade the face, head, ears, and neck.
  • Wear sunglasses that wrap around and block as close to 100% of both UVA and UVB rays as possible.
  • Put on sunscreen with sun protective factor (SPF) 15 or higher, and both UVA and UVB protection.
  • Avoid tanning beds and sunlamps. The UV rays from them are as dangerous as the UV rays from the sun.

For more information or to schedule an appointment, contact Medi-Spa at 865.342.5823(Knoxville location) or 865.868.4683 (Sevierville location).



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General, Special Offers & Rebates    |    0 comments    |    May 9

Share Your Beauty Secret

Medi-Spa at Knoxville Dermatology Group is pleased to share this exciting offer from Medicis Aesthetics. Share your beauty secret with a friend and you can save up to $390 on treatment with the Restylane® family of products during this limited-time offer. Please see below for further details.

This offer runs between May 1–June 30, 2011, so please call our office today at 865.342.5823 (Knoxville) or  865.868.4683 (Sevierville) to schedule an appointment.



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