One-year follow-up of dermoscopy education on the ability of medical students to detect skin cancer.

Background: Learning skin cancer detection skills is important, yet many medical schools lack a standardized skin cancer examination (SCE) curriculum.

Objective: To determine medical students' skills in discriminating benign from malignant skin lesions on a 10-item image-based test one year after receiving a SCE intervention.

Methods: Cohort 1 received SCE teaching only.

Clinical and dermoscopic characteristics of new naevi in adults: results from a cohort study.

Background: Naevogenesis is a process known to occur throughout life. To date, investigators have made conclusions about new naevi in adults based on results of cross-sectional studies.

Objectives: To determine the incidence of new naevus development in adults and to describe the dermoscopic morphology of new naevi.

Redefining the number needed to excise.

The number needed to excise (NNE) is a metric used to convey the efficiency of dermatological practice by serving as a gauge for the diagnostic accuracy of melanoma. Rather than an NNE for melanoma alone, we assert that the NNE should measure all skin cancer types and we present data on NNE from two clinical sites demonstrating the utility and trends in NNE over time.

Spitz nevi: a bridge between dermoscopic morphology and histopathology.

Few benign melanocytic lesions encountered in clinical practice elicit the level of controversy as that generated by lesions within the spectrum of Spitz nevi. Unlike melanoma, the dermoscopic structures found in Spitz nevi tend to be distributed in a symmetric and organized manner. This review highlights the melanoma-specific structures and patterns commonly seen in Spitz nevi.

Dermoscopic evaluation of nodular melanoma.

Importance: Nodular melanoma (NM) is a rapidly progressing potentially lethal skin tumor for which early diagnosis is critical.

Objective: To determine the dermoscopy features of NM.

Design: Eighty-three cases of NM, 134 of invasive non-NM, 115 of nodular benign melanocytic tumors, and 135 of nodular nonmelanocytic tumors were scored for dermoscopy features using modified and previously described methods.

Dermoscopy for the pediatric dermatologist part I: dermoscopy of pediatric infectious and inflammatory skin lesions and hair disorders.

The dermoscope allows physicians to examine the macroscopic and microscopic primary morphology of skin lesions, identify subtle clinical clues, confirm naked-eye clinical diagnoses, and monitor treatment progress while posing little threat to the young patient. This review summarizes important dermoscopic structures seen in infectious and inflammatory skin conditions and hair disorders in children. Scabies, pediculosis, phthiriasis, molluscum contagiosum, tinea nigra, and verrucae are well characterized dermoscopically by delta-shaped structures, ovoid-shaped nits, the crab louse, red corona, brown strands or spicules, and multiple densely packed papilla with a central black dot surrounded by a whitish halo, respectively.

Clinical and dermoscopic characteristics of desmoplastic melanomas.

Objective: To describe and analyze the clinical and dermoscopic characteristics of desmoplastic melanoma (DM) as a function of pathologic subtype and phenotypic traits.

Design: Retrospective case series.

Setting: Eight high-risk dermatology clinics.

Desmoplastic melanoma: a review.

Desmoplastic melanoma (DM) is a variant of spindle cell melanoma typically found on chronically sun-damaged skin of older individuals. Early diagnosis can be challenging because it is often amelanotic and has a predominantly dermal component. DM can be difficult to diagnose not only clinically but also histologically, and can be mistaken for a variety of benign and malignant nonmelanocytic spindle cell tumors when viewed on prepared histopathology slides.

Dermoscopy for the pediatric dermatologist part III: dermoscopy of melanocytic lesions.

Melanocytic nevi encompass a variety of lesions, including blue, Spitz, congenital, and acquired nevi. These nevi can occasionally manifest clinical morphologies resembling melanoma, and the presence of such nevi in children can elicit anxiety in patients, parents, and clinicians. Dermoscopy has been shown to increase the diagnostic accuracy for melanoma and to help differentiate melanoma from nevi, ultimately aiding in the decision-making process as to whether to perform a biopsy.

Clear cell acanthoma induced by a dermatofibroma.

Dermatofibromas are known to induce overlying skin changes and secondary lesions including seborrheic keratoses, Bowen disease, and basal cell hyperpigmentation. However, a paucity of literature describes clear cell acanthomas being induced by a dermatofibromas. We describe an unusual case of a clear cell acanthoma overlying a dermatofibroma and present the first dermoscopic image (to our knowledge) to the literature.

Negative pigment network: an additional dermoscopic feature for the diagnosis of melanoma.

Background: The negative pigment network (NPN) is seen as a negative of the pigmented network and it is purported to be a melanoma-specific structure.

Objectives: We sought to assess the frequency, sensitivity, specificity, and odds ratios (ORs) of NPN between melanoma cases and a group of control lesions.

Methods: Digitalized images of skin lesions from 679 patients with histopathological diagnosis of dermatofibroma (115), melanocytic nevus (220), Spitz nevus (139), and melanoma (205) were retrospectively collected and blindly evaluated to assess the presence/absence of NPN.

Dermoscopy for the pediatric dermatologist, part ii: dermoscopy of genetic syndromes with cutaneous manifestations and pediatric vascular lesions.

Genetic syndromes including basal cell nevus syndrome (BSNS), xeroderma pigmentosum (XP), and epidermodysplasia verruciformis (EV) predispose the individual to skin cancer. Basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) often develop in patients with BCNS and XP. One of the aims of surveillance examination in these patients is to detect BCC while the tumors are still small and easy to manage.

Effect of dermoscopy education on the ability of medical students to detect skin cancer.

Objectives: To determine students' ability to discriminate benign vs malignant lesions and to assess attitudes regarding skin cancer examination (SCE).

Design: Second-year medical students at 1 institution participated in an SCE intervention for 2 consecutive years.

Intervention: Cohort 1 received intervention A, consisting of SCE teaching without a dermoscopy tutorial.

New recommendations for the categorization of cutaneous features of congenital melanocytic nevi.

Background: The diameter of congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN) has served as the lone criterion for determining risks of adverse outcomes such as melanoma. A standardized description of additional morphologic features is needed.

Objective: We sought to develop a consensus-based standardized categorization of cutaneous features of CMN and to test agreement among experts on the proposed scheme.

Current management approaches for congenital melanocytic nevi.

Lack of information and misinformation abounds regarding the potential risks of malignancy, management approaches, benefits of surgical intervention, follow-up strategies, and overall prognosis for individuals with congenital melanocytic nevi (CMN). This review is intended to provide answers to questions that frequently arise shortly after the birth of individuals with CMN, especially of larger types.

Developing an interactive web-based learning program on skin cancer: the learning experiences of clinical educators.

Web-based learning in medical education is rapidly growing. However, there are few firsthand accounts on the rationale for and development of web-based learning programs. We present the experience of clinical educators who developed an interactive online skin cancer detection and management course in a time-efficient and cost-efficient manner without any prior skills in computer programming or technical construction of web-based learning programs.

Dermoscopy: an aid to the detection of amelanotic cutaneous melanoma metastases.

Background: The recognition of amelanotic cutaneous melanoma metastases (ACMM) remains a diagnostic challenge.

Objectives: To describe and analyze the clinical and dermoscopic characteristics of ACMM.

Patients And Methods: Cases of ACMM were retrospectively selected from the image databases of three dermatology centers.