Healthy Skin Starts With You

By Dr. Brian Keegan

As the cooler fall weather sets in and winter weather approaches, Windsor Dermatology encourages our patients to be mindful of changes in their skin during this time. The cold, dry weather can aggravate certain skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis. Changes in the weather also means it’s a perfect time to schedule a skin screening with your dermatologist to ensure your skin stays healthy, especially as the holiday season approaches. In honor of National Healthy Skin Month, consider these five skin care tips:

• Wear sunscreen. Even though it’s cold out, UV rays are present year round. Your skin can absorb reflective light during outdoor winter activities such as skiing or snowboarding, which makes the sun just as intense. Even though it’s not hot outside, you should still think about wearing sunscreen. 
• Moisturize. Skin conditions such as eczema or psoriasis are more common during this time of year due to the colder weather and the decrease of humidity in the air. Moisturize your skin consistently to ensure it stays hydrated. 
• Reduce stress. The holiday season can be stressful and stress can exacerbate people’s underlying skin conditions such as acne, eczema and psoriasis. Try to limit the unnecessary holiday stress to help keep your skin under control and reaction-free. 
• Eat healthy. Everyone likes to indulge during the holidays, but this type of behavior can lead to a skin outbreak. Drinking alcohol and straying from a healthy diet can leave the skin swollen and create bags under the eyes. Eating healthy foods will leave your skin happy and healthy for the holiday season. 
• Quit smoking. Smoking damages your skin by causing wrinkles, premature skin aging and staining of the fingers and nails. With the new year approaching, make a resolution to quit smoking. Seek help from your primary care physician if you don’t think you can do this on your own.

These five skin care tips will help you maintain healthy skin while setting you up for success as the weather changes and the holidays get closer.

To schedule an appointment with a dermatologist at Windsor Dermatology, call +1-609-443-4500 or visit Windsor Dermatology.

Paget’s Disease: Skin Exams Reveal Breast Cancer

By Dr. Wendy Myers

 

Since October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the doctors at Windsor Dermatology want to emphasize the vital importance of skin and breast exams. 

Many patients are unaware that breast cancer can be present on the skin in a condition called Paget’s disease. With this condition, abnormal cells are commonly found on the nipple and around the areola of women and, at times, men. Patients will often experience symptoms such as itching and burning, and an eczema-like condition around the nipple, according to the National Cancer Institute.

There also may be oozing or bleeding from the nipple, as well as flaking, crusty or thickened skin on or around the nipple. Often times, these symptoms can be misdiagnosed as eczema, so it’s important to see your dermatologist if you notice anything that seems suspicious on this area of the skin. This disease is often indicative of underlying tumors within the breast.

Windsor Dermatology works regularly with patients, oncologists and breast surgeons to successfully formulate an integrated treatment program that takes into account both immediate and long-term outcomes. Regardless of the source or cause of a skin abnormality, patients should always seek care and follow up. Skin cancer and breast cancer have close ties to one another according to the Skin Cancer Foundation. In recognition of Breast Cancer Awareness Month, now’s the perfect time to take an even closer look at your skin.

To schedule a skin screening with a dermatologist at Windsor Dermatology, call +1-609-443-4500 or visit Windsor Dermatology to make an appointment.

The ABCDE’s of Melanoma – What to Look For and How to Protect Yourself

By Dr. Brian Keegan 

School is back in session. You may know your alphabet, but do you know your ABCDE’s on how to check your skin for melanoma? According to the American Cancer Society, about 76,100 new melanoma cases will be diagnosed this year. At Windsor Dermatology, we are focused on educating our patients on how to check their skin and protect themselves. 

Originally developed at New York University as a way to identify concerning lesions, the ABCDE’s of melanoma is a screening procedure to help patients check their skin. If you suspect anything suspicious, remember to schedule an appointment with your dermatologist. 

Learn the ABCDE’s of melanoma:

Asymmetry – If you fold the lesion in half, both sides don’t look the same.

Border – Most moles will come to an end. Lesions that are of concern may bleed off, look more faint in certain spots or different around the edges.

Color – Lesions that have multiple colors, such as red, black, brown or white, can be concerning. 

Diameter – Moles should not be bigger than a half a centimeter. 

Evolution – Added after the ABCD’s, evolution stands for change. Any change in a mole should be further examined by a dermatologist. 

The ABCDE’s of melanoma provide a way for patients to check their skin at home. At Windsor Dermatology, we see lesions all the time that fit some or many of these points. The important thing to remember is anything that is of concern, should be checked by a dermatologist. Scheduling annual skin screenings is important as your dermatologist knows what specifically to look for and is able to check those hard to see areas of your body.

To schedule a skin screening with a dermatologist at Windsor Dermatology, call 609-443-4500 or visit Windsor Dermatology to make an appointment or to learn more about melanoma.

Best Procedures to Help Ensure Your Skin Looks Rejuvenated at Any Age

By Teresa Zawada 

At Windsor Dermatology, we offer a variety of in-office cosmetic procedures that help patients obtain healthy, youthful looking skin at any age. 

While there are many aesthetic skincare options available, we always inform and educate our patients about what options are the best for them. Once we understand our patients’ objectives, we develop a personal skincare treatment plan. In addition to our in-office services, we also can suggest at-home options that work to complement and maintain procedures done in our office.
 

So what are the benefits of our personalized treatments? Here is a sample: 

Microdermabrasion is one of the most popular and effective anti-aging skincare treatments that can help your skin appear younger and firmer looking. This non-invasive, safe and pain-free procedure is ideal for patients looking to treat or eliminate fine lines and wrinkles, age spots, stretch marks and discoloration.            

In addition, peels can help liven up the skins appearance, and are perfect for those with visible signs of aging, sun damage or scaring. We would recommend several types of peels to improve your skins tone and texture, while helping with acne breakouts, fine lines and wrinkles, oily complexions and facial redness and blotchiness.

A Salicylic Peel is a procedure that helps to refine, resurface and revise the skin. This peel is ideal for those suffering from acne, oily skin, rosacea or frequent whiteheads or blackheads.

A Glycolic Peel helps freshen and rejuvenate the skin by removing dead and damaged skin cells from the top layer of the skin.

A Phyto-Pumpkin Enzyme Peel is ideal for patients with sensitive or intolerant skin or rosacea.

A Deep-Cleansing Enzyme Peel is perfect for patients that are unable to tolerate stronger chemical peels due to sensitivity, easily irritated or allergy-prone skin. This peel is made from bromelain extract, which is derived from the pineapple plant.

As you can see, we have a wide variety of aesthetic treatment options to help rejuvenate your skin at any age. Make an appointment with me by August 29, 2014 to receive 10% off microdermabrasion and any of our peels.

Call Windsor Dermatology at 609-443-4500 or visit Windsor Dermatology to make an appointment or to learn more about our aesthetic procedures.