Medical Dermatology
Acne
Acne is the most commonly reported skin condition that can affect all people regardless of age group. Caused by inflammation and blockage of your pores, acne can occur on your face, neck, back, arms, and even your buttocks. This skin condition can have a severe impact on your self-esteem. Fortunately, Dr. Miles offers an effective acne treatment. Acne treatments are customized to your skin type and the severity of your acne. Treatment options include topicals, oral antibiotics, chemical peels, Hydrafacials. Aerolase Neo is a great adjunct treatment to enhance medical therapy, minimize dark spots, acne scarring, and enhance skin tightening.
Acne Scars
Acne Scar Treatment requires an individualized treatment plan. Common therapies include a retinoid topical combined with laser rejuvenation, chemical peels, and microneedling.
Actinic Keratoses
Actinic keratosis is a rough, scaly patch or bump on the skin. It's also known as a solar keratosis. Actinic keratoses are very common, and many people have them. They are caused by ultraviolet (UV) damage to the skin. Some actinic keratoses can turn into squamous cell skin cancer.
Benign Skin Growths
A non-cancerous (benign) tumour of the skin is a growth or abnormal area on the skin that does not spread (metastasize) to other parts of the body. Non-cancerous tumours are not usually life-threatening. They usually don’t need any treatment but may be removed in some cases.
Dandruff
Dandruff is a common scalp condition in which small pieces of dry skin flake off of the scalp. If you have dark hair or you're wearing dark colors, you may notice the flakes in your hair or on your shoulders. Dandruff may also make your scalp itch.
Hyperpigmentation & Melasma
If you have dark spots on your skin, it can be hard to tell if it’s hyperpigmentation or melasma, as both are extremely common. While they are two different dermatological conditions, they can look and act alike, and they are both caused by similar things. Although different types of hyperpigmentation can be caused by various factors such as acne scarring, medications or inflammation from other conditions, the main cause of hyperpigmentation is sun exposure. One specific type of hyperpigmentation is melasma, which is caused in part by hormonal changes within the body. It is called “the mask of pregnancy,” because of this hormonal cause and because it almost always affects a person’s face, resulting in dark patches of skin on a person’s chin, cheeks, nose, or upper lip.
Dermatitis & Eczema
Atopic dermatitis (eczema) is a condition that causes dry, itchy and inflamed skin. It's common in young children but can occur at any age. Atopic dermatitis is long lasting (chronic) and tends to flare sometimes. It can be irritating but it's not contagious.
Treatment includes:
Keeping the skin well moisturized.
Avoiding allergic and irritant triggers.
Using corticosteroid creams for the short term and immunomodulators creams for long term therapy.
Moderate to severe may require biologic therapies or oral Jax inhibitor medications.
Excimer laser.
Applying creams that help to restore and protect the skin barrier.
Moles
Moles, also known as nevi, are a common type of skin growth. They often appear as small, dark brown spots that are caused by clusters of pigment-forming cells called melanocytes. Most moles are harmless. Rarely, they become cancerous. Being aware of changes in your moles and other pigmented patches is important to finding skin cancer, especially malignant melanoma.
Hyperhidrosis
Hyperhidrosis is excessive sweating that's not always related to heat or exercise. You may sweat so much that it soaks through your clothes or drips off your hands. Heavy sweating can disrupt your day and cause social anxiety and embarrassment.
Psoriasis
Psoriasis is an autoimmune disease that can be emotionally distressing due to associated symptoms such as itching and flaking skin. Psoriasis occurs when your immune system sends signals to your skin cells to divide too quickly. These cells build up on your skin, resulting in thick, scaly plaques. The severity of your disorder determines treatment options. Treatment options are many and include topical creams, biologics, and light therapy. Dr. Miles utilizes a Excimer Laser to enhance the clearance of psoriasis plaques.
Skin Cancer
The three most common forms of skin cancer are basal cell carcinoma, squamous cell carcinoma, and melanoma. Although basal cell carcinoma and squamous cell carcinoma rarely metastasize, melanoma can spread and is the most deadly. If Dr. Miles detects these cancers in their early stages, she can surgically remove them. She specializes in screening for skin cancer using a dermatoscope. This handheld device increases the detection of melanoma while minimizing the need to biopsy normal moles.
Skin Cancer Screening
We provide extensive full-body skin cancer screening exams. Dr. Miles has advanced training in Dermoscopy, which is a noninvasive method that allows the evaluation of colors and microstructures of the epidermis, the dermoepidermal junction, and the papillary dermis not visible to the naked eye. Finding specific diagnostic patterns in the distribution of colors and dermoscopy structures can help figure out whether a pigmented skin lesion is cancerous or not. The use of this technique provides a valuable aid in diagnosing pigmented skin lesions.
Skin Tags
Skin tags are harmless growths that can appear anywhere on your skin, but often develop on the neck, eyelids, or underarms. They may be the same color as your skin or darker. Some are pink. Others turn red when irritated. You may see one dangling from a stalk, while another is firmly fixed to the skin.
Rashes
The cause of a rash can be determined from how it looks and its location and symptoms. Skin testing, such as a scraping or biopsy, may also be used to help with diagnosis. Sometimes, the cause of the rash remains unknown. A simple rash is called dermatitis, meaning inflammation of the skin. Contact dermatitis is caused by things your skin touches, such as chemicals, cosmetics, detergents, or poison ivy. Seborrheic dermatitis is a rash that appears in patches of redness and scaling around the eyebrows, eyelids, mouth, nose, trunk, and behind the ears. If it happens on your scalp, it is called dandruff in adults and cradle cap in infants.
Rosacea
Rosacea is a common skin condition that causes flushing or long-term redness on your face. It also may cause enlarged blood vessels and small, pus-filled bumps. Some symptoms may flare for weeks to months and then go away for a while. Rosacea can be mistaken for acne, dermatitis or other skin problems. There's no cure for rosacea. But it can be controlled with treatment, gentle skin care and avoiding things that cause flare-ups.
Vitiligo
Vitiligo is a disease that causes loss of skin color in patches. The discolored areas usually get bigger with time. The condition can affect the skin on any part of the body. It can also affect hair and the inside of the mouth. Normally, the color of hair and skin is determined by melanin. Vitiligo occurs when cells that produce melanin die or stop functioning. Vitiligo affects people of all skin types, but it may be more noticeable in those with darker skin tones.
To treat vitiligo, Dr. Miles uses the excimer laser’s highly focused beam of UVB light to target the lightened areas of skin. The UVB light may stimulate repigmentation in the skin, restoring color to white patches. The procedure is painless and can be administered in less than 30 minutes. Multiple sessions are usually required to achieve the desired results. Twice weekly sessions for four to six months are recommended, and there is no downtime required.
Vulvar Dermatology
The skin of the vulva is unique, and not like the skin on your thigh, nor is it mucosa (like the mouth or vagina). Women can have various disorders in this area whether it be from infection, irritation or contact allergy, among other problems. In certain cases, managing a condition can be as simple as streamlining daily activities, getting rid of frequent allergens and irritants, and applying topical medicines to reduce inflammation while checking for infections. A dedicated visit to address solely this concern is required for comprehensive evaluation.
Warts
Warts are a type of skin infection caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV). The infection causes rough, skin-colored bumps to form on the skin. The virus is contagious. You can get warts from touching someone who has them. Warts most commonly appear on the hands, but they can also affect the feet, face, genitals and knees. There are many treatment options available, such as cryotherapy (freezing with liquid nitrogen), acid treatments,etc. Treatment method is determined based on the number, size and location of warts.