News

The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has named a former drug company executive to the new position of deputy commissioner for medical products and tobacco, the online Wall Street Journal reports.

U.S. hospitalizations related to the USA300 strain of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) more than tripled between 2004 and 2008, Medscape Today reports.

Pressure ulcers are more prevalent in black high-risk nursing home residents than in white residents, according to a recent study, Medscape Today reports.

Researchers at King&rdsquo;s College say they have identified the exact molecule that causes the stinging pain of sunburn - a finding, Time.com reports, that could lead to improved treatments for more serious conditions, such as arthritis.

A Danish study suggests that signs of atopy may be present long before symptoms begin, even in month-old babies, Medical News Today reports.

Scientists in Western Australia say they’ve found that survival rates for people with merkel cell carcinoma (MCC) are far worse than rates for those with melanoma, widely regarded as the most lethal skin cancer, The Sydney Morning Herald reports.

Lotus Tissue Repair, a start-up company created to develop a treatment for the rare genetic disease dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (DEB), has secured $26 million in financing, Xconomy.com reports.

New research suggests that heart transplant patients are four to 30 times as likely to develop skin cancer as healthy people, depending on their geographic location and other factors, the Los Angeles Times reports.

Higher plasma levels of vitamin D are associated with reduced risk of incident diabetes among people at high risk for the disease, Medscape Medical News reports.

The Inga Ellzey Practice Group (IEPG), the leading expert on dermatology coding, documentation and reimbursement and a Dermatology Times contributor, has spun off a new company, Ellzey Coding Solutions (ECS).

Health Canada has approved the use of the injectable aesthetic filler Bellafill, the San Diego Union-Tribune reports.

Shedding New Light : Derms support FDA’s final sunscreen rules, but some still worry about consumer ‘confusion’ 'Huge Step' : Novel agents boost survival in metastatic melanoma patients Special Report : Fillers & toxins

Novel immunomodulatory antibodies such as ipilimumab (Bristol-Myers Squibb) and other experimental treatment options such as melanoma vaccines, chemotherapy agents (Abraxane, Celgene) and targeted drug therapies (BRAF inhibitors) are proving effective in the treatment of patients with late-stage melanoma, offering increased hope in the continuing battle against this deadly skin cancer.

In my last editorial, I expressed mystification about what exactly was being "reformed" by the passage of the 2,700-page "Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act." Finally, a limited number of details about the provisions of this act are finally coming to light. The latest is the Accountable Care Organizations (ACOs), which represents one of the first proposals to provide initiatives to reform healthcare delivery.

The fact that Medicare reform is being debated on Capitol Hill and a near 30 percent Medicare physician pay cut looms in January appears to be moving some influential lawmakers to get serious about reforming the system used to pay Medicare doctors. House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) has said a solution is "on the short list of things getting done this summer," and two hearings were held in May as part of that process.

The occurrence of several cases of pseudomelanoma after ablative fractional CO2 laser resurfacing underscore the importance of careful pre- and postoperative evaluation to avoid misdiagnosing a benign lesion as malignant melanoma, says Deborah Sarnoff, M.D.

A groundbreaking topically applied neurotoxin now in phase 2 trials would provide a painless, injection-free wrinkle-relaxing alternative if it is eventually approved by regulators, investigators say. "The product is being developed by Revance and would offer an additional choice for the clinician and the patient," says Michael A.C. Kane, M.D., of Kane Plastic Surgery, New York, and an investigator with the trial. "Many people are needle-phobic and would probably prefer a topical over an injection."

The first randomized, controlled study to assess the treatment of hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) with a biologic drug shows that infliximab can safely improve disease severity, pain and quality of life.

Many noninvasive treatments developed to treat unwanted fat show modest results, but they're unlikely to replace tumescent liposuction.

Despite the perceptions of many physicians and patients, an expert says, in practical use, the three neuromodulators approved for use in the United States are more similar than dissimilar.

The safety and dose equivalency of PurTox (Mentor) should place the botulinum toxin head-to-head with Botox when it reaches the U.S. market, according to a European physician who has experience using the pure toxin there. The newcomer, PurTox, is said to be equivalent to the universal comparator Botox (onabotulinumtoxinA, Allergan) in terms of dosing, and, therefore, represents a potential future nemesis for Botox and other toxins on the market.

Many dermatologists' comfort level with dermoscopy is growing, but dermatologists and dermatopathologists don't always agree on the diagnosis of a particular lesion.

Experts believe many side effects of fillers are caused by biofilms, but these infections are difficult to document because biofilms are hard to culture, says Rhoda Narins, M.D., of the Dermatology Surgery & Laser Center, New York, and clinical professor of dermatology, New York University Medical Center, New York. Once a biofilm is suspected, however, choosing the right course of action is critical in effectively managing the condition.

Dermatologists welcome a recently updated policy statement from the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) that adds new information about sunscreen ingredients, vitamin D and the dangers of tanning for teens.

When it enters the U.S. market, Xeomin is expected to have a unit-to-unit equivalence to Botox, the standard ?sthetic toxin in dermatology practices for years. Current off-label use hasn't shown any particular clinical advantage for Xeomin (incobotulinumtoxinA, Merz) over Botox (onabotulinumtoxinA, Allergan) or Dysport (abobotulinumtoxinA, Medicis), but the new toxin will broaden clinicians' ?sthetic options and may spur price competition in the U.S.

Treating nonhealing wounds with advanced therapies requires knowing exactly what you're treating. For example, when considering engineered tissue products for wound healing, "As always, we want to treat the cause of the wound, prepare the wound bed and treat patient-centered concerns," says Severin Laeuchli, M.D., a dermatologist with the University of Zurich's department of dermatology.

Educated, married, mothers, women who are older than their husbands - that's not necessarily the image of the typical cosmetic surgery patient, but a couple of chance comments from patients led three generations of a family of researchers to combine forces to create a prospective study of cosmetic patients that yielded interesting, and unexpected, results.

Thinning eyebrows are a common concern among mature women with challenging treatment options. The most effective way to prevent thin or absent eyebrows with age is to prevent the problem earlier in life.

A teledermatology program based at the University of California, Davis, frequently alters referring physicians' diagnoses and management plans, thereby improving patient outcomes, its director says.

An investigational melanoma drug that targets a mutation found in about half of tumors reduces the risk of progression in patients with advanced disease by nearly three-fourths, and cuts the risk of dying by 63 percent, new research shows.