Top 5 Articles of 2022

Vitiligo’s Emerging Drug Pipeline

Vitiligo’s cause is unknown, but its detrimental effect on patients’ quality of life is clear.1 Medications for this skin disease may work slower than patients anticipate, causing them to feel hopeless, according to Pearl E. Grimes, MD, FAAD, a clinical professor of dermatology at the David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA and founder and director of the Vitiligo and Pigmentation Institute of Southern California in Los Angeles. Discouraged patients may give up and quit treatment, creating tension in their relationship with their physician, Grimes continued. “So many patients that I see come in with the mindset that there is going to be a quick fix for vitiligo. When they don’t see changes in perhaps 2 weeks or 4 weeks, they abandon treatment,” she said.

Zoe Diana Draelos, MD, Talks Cosmeceuticals at Fall Clinical

Zoe Diana Draelos, MD, is a research and clinical board-certified dermatologist and a Fellow of the American Academy of Dermatology. She is in solo private practice in High Point, North Carolina, and a consulting professor of Dermatology at Duke University School of Medicine. In 1988, she founded Dermatology Consulting Services, PLLC, to initiate and perform research in aging skin, acne, rosacea, psoriasis, atopic dermatitis, actinic keratoses, eczema, and aesthetic procedures in the cosmetic, OTC drugs, and pharmaceutical arenas. Prior to pursuing a medical career, Dr. Draelos completed an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering and was elected a Rhodes Scholar. A member of Sigma Xi research honorary and Alpha Omega Alpha medical honorary, she is the author of 14 books including Cosmetics in Dermatology, Hair Cosmetics and Cosmetic Dermatology: Products and Procedures, as well as the editor of Cosmeceuticals, now in its third edition and translated into 7 languages.

Peptides and Skin Care

Peptides are composed of various numbers of amino acids. A dipeptide consists of 2 amino acids, a tripeptide consists of 3 amino acids, and a tetrapeptide consists of 4 amino acids. Not only is the number of amino acids important, but also the order in which the amino acids are arranged. For example, glycyl-histidyl-lysine is thought to stimulate collagen synthesis in fibroblasts, whereas glycyl-lysyl-histidine is thought to stimulate lipolysis in adipocytes. Nevertheless, the function of a peptide in skin care is to transmit a biochemical message from one body area to another body area, providing for communication of a physiologic change.

New Drugs and Therapies in 2022: Acne, Rosacea, and Pruritus

Continued research has led to several exciting therapeutic developments in drug delivery technologies as well as new and experimental medications for a wide spectrum of dermatological diseases and conditions including acne, rosacea, and pruritus. In his presentation at the 2022 Maui Derm for Dermatologists meeting, Neal Bhatia, MD, director of clinical dermatology, at Therapeutics Clinical Research in San Diego, California, urged dermatologists not to be afraid of innovation. Instead, he called on them to be aggressive in learning about new treatments and putting these novel therapies and treatment modalities into daily practice, some of which may become first-line therapies.

What's Trending in Skin Care: June 2022

Luma & Leaf’s moisturizer includes good-for-you ingredients like coconut, tetrapeptide, hyaluronic acid, and fruit extracts to restore the skin and protect against inflammation and moisture loss. The unique blend of hyaluronic acid and fruit extracts improve skin’s circulation. This moisturizer should be used twice a day and applied to a clean face and neck after any other treatments or serums. Therapon’s charcoal clarifying mask targets clogged pores, blackheads, and pimples by combining the best anti-acne ingredients including lactic acid, salicylic acid, kaolin clay, and charcoal. Together, the ingredients extract debris and shrink pores. Apply a quarter-sized amount to the face and leave it on for 10 minutes. This is not recommended for dry or dehydrated skin.