GENERAL DERMATOLOGY
Dermatology is the field of medicine
dedicated to all diseases and problems of the skin, hair, nails and mucous
membranes of the mouth and genitalia. Dermatologists train for at least
four years, usually a year of general medicine followed by three years of
dermatology. Drs. Beutner and Geisse have each had six years of training
with advanced training in different subspecialities, such as infectious
diseases and pediatrics for Dr. Beutner, and skin cancer and laser surgery
and dermatopathology for Dr. Geisse.
Dermatologists are experts at all skin
conditions for both in their diagnosis and management. Dermatologists
provide invaluable services to patients with chronic skin diseases that
cause chronic rashes, itching, blistering problems that require sometimes
sophisticated treatment such as light therapy and anticancer drugs.
Dermatologists are also expert at various
cosmetic procedures, including removal of benign lesions on the face and
elsewhere, laser surgery and liposuction of which some of the first
procedures were performed in this country by dermatologists. The
originator of tumescent anesthesia, Dr. Jeffrey Klein, was also a
dermatologist. Chemical peels, hair transplants, dermabrasion, and acne
scar revision were all discovered and refined by dermatologists and
dermatologic surgeons.
Patients should have direct access to
dermatology and, in fact, laws have been passed in various states which
require health insurance companies to allow direct access to
dermatologists. This makes sense because patients can see lesions on their
skin and know when they have a problem, unlike many other organ systems.
This is not often the case in a managed care setting but there is a
growing trend toward direct access to dermatologists because they have
proven themselves cost-effective by making the right diagnoses and
providing the right treatments promptly for skin disease. |