It is common knowledge that the eyes are the key to a person’s soul. However, common knowledge is frequently wrong. Our first impression most likely comes from a person’s general appearance, particularly his or her skin. One just has to speak to a teenager with acne to understand the importance of skin to one’s self-image and that image as it is projected to others. The importance of “good” skin does not diminish with advancing age; hence, the increasing demand for cosmetic surgery and BoTox injections. Dermatologists and plastic surgeons can even become media personalities.
However, the skin is also a serious organ. Drs. Frank Powell and Maeve Mc Aleer have contributed our CME article on one of the commoner skin disorders afflicting older adults: “Rosacea: Relieving a Chronic Inflammatory Facial Disorder.” The skin is our largest organ and the first line of defence against a sometimes hostile environment. As with our other organs, it is also prone to dysfunction and disease, particularly if we do not care for it appropriately. We now know that environmental exposures are an important cause of skin dysfunction, and Barbara Brillhart gives us advice on how to prevent skin damage in her article “Preventive Skin Care for Older Adults.” John Kraft, Carrie Lynde, and Dr. Charles Lynde have contributed a general review article on “Skin Neoplasias in the Older Adult,” while Dr. David Ollila and Patricia Long discuss skin malignancy in their piece “Detection and Diagnosis of Cutaneous Melanoma.” Our final focus article covers “Second Malignant Neoplasms” by Drs. Miguel N. Burnier and Vinicius S. Saraiva.
As usual, we have a collection of articles on other topics. In our Cardiovascular Column, Drs. P.N. Sylaja and Philip Barber discuss “Thrombolysis for Acute Ischemic Stroke.” Our Nutrition Column, by Fatim Ajwani and Maria Ricupero, tackles the question “What’s the Skinny on Trans Fat?” Finally, Dr. Wilbert Aronow has provided our case study this month, entitled “An Older Woman with Peripheral Arterial Disease.”
Enjoy this issue,
Barry Goldlist
