Review by a specialist in dermatology

The skin is the largest human organ, the role of which is to protect all other organs. As with any organ, various changes occur in the skin, which must be monitored and examined from time to time. Sometimes those changes can be completely harmless and normal, while at other times our body tells us through the skin that something is wrong with some other organ. Also, some changes can be cancerous or pre-cancerous. That is why it is very important to contact your dermatologist immediately to prevent worst-case scenarios in time.

To highlight the importance of prevention, we will describe in detail what an examination by a dermatologist specialist looks like, what questions you may be asked and what you can expect. In addition, we will also tackle the treatments to remove those changes.

What does an examination at a dermatologist specialist look like?

There are several factors that create a change in the skin and impair its health and beauty. These are various microorganisms (bacteria, viruses, fungi), immunological problems, such as eczema, urticaria, as well as melanoma or skin tumors. Diseases of internal organs can sometimes be diagnosed through skin problems 0 for example, jaundice can indicate liver diseases and the like.

Before examining your skin, the dermatologist will ask you if you have noticed any changes in your skin and if you have any problems in general. They will proceed to ask you questions about when the changes first appeared, whether they have been there consistently since they first appeared, or whether there have been periods of their retraction.

Further, the dermatologist specialist will ask you questions about whether you suspect any cause of these changes. When answering such questions, you should take into account as many potential factors as possible, such as: harmful substances at work, consumption of stimulants such as alcohol, narcotic drugs, cigarettes, sexual activity, chronic diseases that you have already been diagnosed with, previous problems with skin diseases, and family history (if anyone in your family has suffered from similar skin diseases).

If you already suspect the cause of the infection, you should also consider whether there is a possibility that some other person is also infected. Dermatological diseases are transmitted by:

– Direct (skin-to-skin contact, sexual relations)

– Indirectly (through towels, by touching any things touched by an infected person)

If there is a possibility that you have infected someone, which usually means HPV (human papilloma virus), you should, if possible, inform that other person of it so that they can contact their dermatologist as soon as possible.

Of course, there are also dermatological diseases that are not communicable, which depend on genetics, the immune system, lifestyle, and various other factors. Those would include eczema, dandruff, allergic reactions, melanomas, benign changes…

Practical overview

After you have told your dermatologist all the possibilities related to the infection or change in the skin, there follows an examination. Hands and eyes are the most important tools of a dermatologist, and they will examine the changes on you with their instruments and evaluate their exact nature.

In some cases, it is not possible to determine at the very what a given change on the skin means, so there is a possibility that a specialist dermatologist will recommend you to do further and more detailed analyzes so that your diagnosis can be determined with complete accuracy.

When examining moles or when pre-cancer is suspected, the dermatologist will need to examine the entire surface of your skin. This includes the feet, scalp, nails, all kinds of skin folds, the rectum, and the genital region.

So, going to a dermatologist does not imply that your problems will necessarily be found on the skin’s surface. You will turn to this type of a specialist if you notice changes in your hair, scalp, mucous membranes, genital area, and nails.

What changes does a specialist dermatologist look for?

There are several factors by which a dermatologist determines the diagnosis, the nature of your disease, as well as the course of treatment to cure it. When a dermatologist practically examines the skin, they must consider the following:

– Skin change type. Some changes occur on moles (when they grow, they change shape), some include the appearance of warts, changes in pigmentation on some parts of the skin, the appearance of cysts, pus.

– The color of the change. Red, a different shade of black, brown, yellowish or white color changes on the skin indicate a different diagnosis.

– Skin texture. It is also important to feel the quality of the skin on the affected area. Is it a growth that is rough, smooth, hard, soft to the touch?

- Borders. Are the boundaries clear, like healthy moles, or can’t you tell where the diseased ends and the healthy begins?

- Where the change is located and what form it takes. Is the change in the form of a rash, small dots spread over the whole part, or is it specific to a single part (foot, armpit, face, back)?

- Accompanying symptoms. Does the skin in the area where the change happened itch, hurt, or give you any uncomfortable sensation?

To determine what the true condition of the skin looks like, the dermatologist will probably use a glass spatula. It is applied to the skin, and its pressure stops the flow of blood in that region, so you can clearly see the change in the skin.

What other test methods are still used?

Magnifying glasses, a dermatoscope, are often used to see the nature of the growth on the skin at a higher level. This device, for example, can detect small changes on moles, or the appearance of spots and bumps.

Blood tests also represent a rather important part of the examination because they offer an insight into inflammatory processes, or in the detection of allergies that manifest on the surface of the skin. Speaking of allergies, special allergy tests help to detect them, where the potential allergen is placed on a small area of the skin and the body’s reaction is observed.

In more serious cases, when pre-cancer is suspected, a biopsy is performed. There, a small sample of damaged skin is taken to determine whether the change is benign or malignant. The biopsy is taken under local anesthesia and the sample is quite small, so this test is not painful at all.

Removal of skin changes

When it is determined exactly what type of change it is, whether it falls under a wart, keratosis, papilloma, soft fibroma, corn, condyle or any other diagnosis, the next step is to remove that change, and restore the skin to being normal and healthy.

Depending on the diagnosis, treatment may include the use of creams, toners, lotions, or antibiotics, as is the case with acne, or perhaps rosacea. On the other hand, some other changes involve minor surgical intervention.

Today, technology has advanced so much that all those treatments are minimally invasive, practically painless, without scarring and other complications after the procedure. Removal of skin changes is performed by laser removal or application of salicylic acid, liquid nitrogen, cytostatic preparation. However, the method that has become more and more popular among dermatologists in recent years is radio wave treatment.

Treatment with radio waves

There are many reasons why many dermatologists agree that radiofrequency ablation is one of the best skin treatments. Here at the Longa Vita Polyclinic, we use the Ellman Acu Sect radiofrequency surgical device, which provides our doctors with an excellent surgical control, precision, and versatility. This device is known worldwide for its quality and is manufactured in the United States of America. Treatment with this device, due to its high quality and technology, has several advantages.

The advantages of Ellman radio frequency:

A small risk of scarring
Minimal damage to the surrounding skin
No bleeding
Minimal pain after an application of local anesthetic
The Ellman procedure is performed as follows: first, an anesthetic cream is applied, an injection is given to the affected area, and the anesthetic is left to work. In some cases, when the growths are extremely small or when the procedure is very simple, anesthetic is not even necessary.

Then the radio wave treatment is carried out, which can last from 20 seconds to two or three minutes. In any case, the treatments are quite short, which may surprise you, because you won’t even feel that the growth has been removed.

After the treatment, a small scab will appear on the treated part of the skin, which will fall off within a week. In its place, a young, paler skin will appear as compared to the untreated skin. Do not worry, it’s a completely natural occurrence. In a few weeks, the skin where the growth used to be will look exactly the same as the rest of the healthy skin. In short, it will look as if the growth or skin change has never happened.

When using Ellman radio waves, no scar tissue remains on the skin, injuries are minimal, healing is fast.

Treatment with creams, shampoos, and lotions

Determining the right therapy for dermatological diseases that can be removed with creams depends solely on the nature of the disease itself. For example, acne is treated with a combination of various types of creams, lotions, antibiotics, and a special diet. Rosacea is also treated by applying anti-inflammatory creams, and lotions are also used. Sometimes, depending on the degree and nature of rosacea, the treatment with medical lasers is recommended. We also offer numerous aesthetic medicine treatments that are performed at our polyclinic, which you can read more about in our aesthetic medicine section.

Eczema is also one of the diseases that, among other things, is treated with creams. These can be herbal creams or creams with corticosteroids, which should not be used for more than 7 to 10 days. Antibiotic creams should also not be used on your own, but only according to the prescription given by your dermatologist. In the case of certain skin diseases, creams, shampoos and lotions cannot completely remove the resulting changes, but can only alleviate the symptoms to a certain extent, because some diseases simply remain with one for life.

Quantum medicine in the treatment of skin diseases

Here at our polyclinic, we have been successfully treating eczema and other allergic and immune changes on the skin for many years with quantum medicine on the Bicom device, where the therapies are completely safe for small babies as well as children, adolescents, and adults. It should be noted that the examination on the Bicom device reveals the cause of the disease that causes skin changes, after which the doctor makes a therapy plan that is very successful and the skin changes gradually disappear.

Surgery

Surgery is the only solution for those changes on the skin for which the biopsy shows that they are malignant. Then the nature of the malignant tumor should be additionally examined and its removal performed as soon as possible. Depending on the type of tumor, such operations are performed by a specialist surgeon or dermatologist. By regularly monitoring your moles and other skin changes, as well as by care and healthy living, you can prevent the appearance of such changes or spot them in time.

All things considered, it can be said that dermatological interventions are quite quick and painless, and there is no reason to avoid going to the doctor. Often, the problems that cause changes in the skin are much more painful than their removal. Therefore, if you notice anything suspicious on your skin, contact your dermatologist.

In the diagnosis and treatment of skin, mucous membranes, nails, hair and venereal diseases, the Longa Vita polyclinic in Niš employs the state-of-the-art knowledge. Our expert team is always available to help you have a beautiful and healthy skin. Get a dermatological examination by making an appointment at: 069/1122-358.