Non-surgical management of actinic keratosis, Bowen’s disease and non-melanoma skin cancer

Non-melanoma skin cancers (NMSCs) are primary cutaneous neoplasms comprising mainly of basal cell carcinomas (BCCs) and squamous cell carcinomas (SCCs). In 2011, 102,628 cases of NMSCs (74% BCC and 23% SCC) were recorded in England, making NMSC the most common...

Emergenza Sorrisi – Doctors for Smiling Children

History Our association was born in 2007, originally under the name SmileTrain Italy Onlus, with the aim of operating on children affected by cleft lip and palate in the developing world, offering them the possibility to smile and to have...

Hymenoplasty and virginity – an issue of socio-cultural morality and medical ethics

This article reflects the increasing complexity of the modern world, where the rich diversity of culture, morals, the law and religion, can have profound effects on medical practice. Sometimes there is considerable debate which is not in fact appropriate. This...

An open letter to young plastic surgeons (from an old UK plastic surgeon)

You are in a specialty that is second to none – you can use your skills to improve the quality of life of your patients, whether they have cancer, congenital abnormalities or damage caused by trauma. Most (90%) plastic surgery...

Support groups for hidradenitis suppurativa

Hidradenitis suppurativa (HS) is an inflammatory condition characterised by painful inflamed nodules in the apocrine regions of the body. It follows a chronic relapsing clinical course and is a very difficult condition to treat. It has an estimated prevalence of...

Temple restoration

The complex biological process of facial ageing engenders many structural changes that are influenced by the combined effects of gravity, bone resorption, soft tissue atrophy, displacement of fat and a complex synergy of textural skin changes [1]. One of the...

Cellulite: does wearing compression hosiery work?

Cellulite affects a large proportion of women. Recently several companies have produced compression hosiery claiming to reduce the appearance of cellulite. One of the latest products are ‘Silver Wave’ stockings, made by Solidea, which claim to reduce cellulite using ‘patented...

Cleft surgery: outreach not over-reach - You can’t save the world, but you might improve it a little

Cleft lip and palate surgery is a life changing event. In many regards the surgery itself is relatively straightforward without major physiological consequences and the opportunity of making an impact for little risk is highly attractive. Medical missions offer the...

Can 3D facial imaging improve patient management in disfiguring eye disease?

Fight for Sight is the leading UK charity funder of eye research. Since the 2013 Sight Loss and Vision Priority Setting Partnership we have encouraged our researchers to work on priorities jointly identified by people affected by sight loss and...

HA dermal filler with lidocaine: initial clinical outcomes

Hyaluronic acid (HA) is a natural occurring body polysaccharide essential for various body functions, present in connective tissues, skin, vitreous humour of eye, extracellular matrix, synovial fluid, etc [1]. It was first isolated in bovine vitreous by Mayer and Palmer...

Lasers and the skin

Laser is an acronym for Light Amplification by Stimulated Emission of Radiation. Lasers have revolutionised the treatment of many skin conditions and are being used both in terms of a medical and an aesthetic context. Laser technology has been advancing...

New approaches to soft tissue reconstruction involving adipose tissue engineering

Introduction The spectrum of patients affected by subcutaneous tissue loss is both wide and varied, including those who have undergone tumour removal, trauma patients, such as those injured in road traffic accidents, and individuals who have suffered from deep burns...