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Are mid-level practitioners right for your office? One dermatologist is convinced it's the right thing to do to grow your practice and have more time to do the procedures you want to do.

Skincare product sales can be a natural fit for dermatologists, and patients need more guidance than ever in navigating the sea of cosmetic products. Here are some important guidelines to follow when venturing into the sales side of skin.

Advertising can pay big benefits, from helping to brand a dermatologist and practice, to driving would-be patients in the door. But without guidance, dermatologists who embark on what can be expensive campaigns might also find they get nothing, or, worse, tarnish their reputations.

National report - The importance of vitamin D to a wide range of health issues - from bone problems to cancer to infectious disease - is highlighted in a review article on vitamin D deficiency that appeared in the July 19 issue of the New England Journal of Medicine.

Chronic or prolonged stress is a key factor in the creation and maintenance of fat, according to a paper published in advance online in Nature Medicine on July 1. The signaling pathway - neuropeptide Y and its cellular receptor Y2 - play a crucial role in this process.

Washington - The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced proposed changes in regulations governing formulation, testing and labeling of over-the-counter sunscreen products claiming to offer protection from ultraviolet A and ultraviolet B radiation.

Paris - Isabelle Dinoire, the French woman who received the world's first partial face transplant in late 2005 after she was mauled by her dog, is progressing excellently, according to her physician.

Creteil, France - A man with neurofibromatosis who received a new nose, mouth, chin and partial cheeks in a 15-hour procedure in January is now doing very well, according to surgeon Laurent Lantieri, M.D.

Boston - Brigham and Women's Hospital, located here, has granted a surgical team led by Bohdan Pomahac, M.D., permission to perform partial face transplants, according to published accounts. Meanwhile, the physicians who performed the world's first and third partial face transplants are planning future transplants, while their existing patients continue progressing well, these physicians tell Dermatology Times.

Published studies have found that dermatology residents express a desire for expanded mentorship. An increasing number of dermatology residency training programs in North America have implemented mentorship programs, designed to advise, encourage, and promote resident mentees. A survey of program directors in both the U.S. and Canada found that program directors supported the concept of mentorship programs. The majority of respondents said it was important for residents to have access to mentors during their residency. Moreover, the majority indicated that the development of more structured mentorship opportunities within the training curriculum could influence the proportion of dermatology residents who pursue academic careers.

Dr. Label is well known for his innovative off-label use of a variety of medications for bullous diseases.

With more than 200 million Internet users in the United States (according to the CIA's online World Factbook, 2005 estimate) the Internet is taking the place of many informational resources such as the Yellow Pages and even person-to-person communication.

A group of medical specialty organizations, including the American Academy of Dermatology (AAD), is pushing new legislation that would delay permanent implementation of Medicare's "pay-for-performance" quality reporting program to allow for a more orderly transition to the new system's Medicare reimbursement.

I have recently seen the newly released Michael Moore movie, Sicko, and it left me with profound sadness and some outrage about how our country cares for the medical needs of its citizens. We physicians have all seen the deterioration of medical care over the past 10-15 years, particularly for middle class working people, many of whom are forced to go without health insurance, while gambling that they do not develop a serious and expensive illness which could ruin them medically and financially.

Acne affects almost all adolescents and adults at some point in their lives but is highly treatable with topical retinoids and antibacterials. The type and severity of acne guide early intervention, which can prevent disfigurement and its psychosocial sequelæ.

Greensboro, N.C. - Merz Pharmaceuticals, based here, has announced the donation of 10,000 tubes of its Mederma consumer skincare product to several nonprofit organizations in the United States, including those for members of the military who have been injured in Iraq and Afghanistan, Medadnews.com reports.

Augusta, Ga. - Research conducted at the Medical College of Georgia suggests that the body may hold the secret to normalizing overzealous skin-cell growth in psoriasis and non-melanoma skin cancers and growth that is too slow in sun-damaged and aging skin, Medicalnewstoday.com reports.

Bern, Switzerland - A study published in July’s Archives of Dermatology suggests that patients with moderate to severe plaque psoriasis may develop papular eruptions during efalizumab treatment - and that because these are new psoriatic lesions, the condition could be referred to as efalizumab-associated papular psoriasis or EAPP, according to a HealthDay News report.

Hong Kong - New research at the University of Hong Kong’s Division of Dermatology suggests that combination therapy using infrared and radiofrequency waves produces mild to moderate improvements in facial skin laxity with few complications, HealthDay News reports.

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If you own your medical practice, your goal should not be simply to protect your personal wealth from the practice's creditors. While this is certainly a mandatory first step, you must do more.

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Many of us create PowerPoint (Microsoft) presentations every year, for business, education and family use. Often, the material is presented or viewed on someone else's computer, on the central server at a medical meeting, or by a business associate or family member.

Auditors estimate that two out of every three physicians will experience embezzlement during their careers. With the inordinate amount of cash circulating in their practices, dermatologists and cosmetic surgeons top the list of potential targets.

Newer body-sculpting treatments should offer patients definitive results, with minimal to no risk as well as no downtime. According to a plastic surgeon, the Ultrashape Contour I technology can offer patients a noninvasive body-contouring solution.

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Dermatologists are increasingly challenged to keep their patients informed of the risks involved in receiving skin and cosmetic treatments from nondermatologists or nonphysicians. Patients need to know that care at medspas may be uniquely different than what they can expect from a board-certified dermatologist. A list of questions from the American Society of Dermatologic Surgery can help guide patients on what to ask and expect.

As lasers and injectables increasingly make their way into the hands of non-dermatologists, rates of complications from cosmetic procedures are taking a turn for the worse and keeping dermatologists busy in correcting the wrongs of poorly trained practitioners.