The number of Americans who want "radical change" in the U.S. healthcare system has reached 36 percent, focusing intense national attention on the issue, says Republican pollster Bill McInturff, who has tracked the question since 1992.

While schools known for academic dermatology produce and retain a relatively high proportion of academic dermatologists, the career path on the whole suffers from low interest among recent graduates — and high attrition rates over time, experts say.

The ongoing Food and Drug Administration (FDA) review of TNF-blocking biologic drugs is unlikely to have much impact on dermatologists' use of these drugs, physicians say.

With competition for dermatology residency slots keener than ever, some program directors worry that the application process weeds out potentially excellent dermatologists who didn't finish at the top of their classes.

Medical-grade honey kills antibiotic-resistant bacteria — including Staphylococcus — in the test tube, and eradicates colonies on the skin of healthy volunteers, Dutch researchers report.

The path to a dermatology residency begins early, and, increasingly, includes a year off from medical school for research, residents say. Prospective dermatology residents also are advised to be flexible, earn strong clinical recommendations and consider an "audition" rotation.

The Department of Defense (DOD) has awarded a multimillion-dollar research grant to develop new therapies for wounded soldiers, which may hasten the pace at which unique, innovative burn and wound healing and cosmetic procedures become commonly used in treating civilians.

National report — A pro-tanning campaign backed by the Indoor Tanning Association (ITA) has raised objections from dermatologists and the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD).

Seven newly identified sites of common DNA variations increase the risk for psoriasis and psoriatic arthritis. The whole genome association study of more than 300,000 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was published in the March issue of PLoS Genetics. The goal was to identify new genes and new pathways for drug development.