Genital rejuvenation: the next frontier in medical and cosmetic dermatology
Genital rejuvenation includes both surgical and non-surgical procedures that are used to improve the functional aspects and/or enhance the aesthetics of the genitalia of both women and men.
Vaginal rejuvenation was first reported on in the medical literature in 2007, but it is only within the past decade that medical professionals and patients have shown an increased interest in this area. The term scrotal rejuvenation was only coined in 2018.
Rejuvenation of the genitalia may be offered for a variety of conditions, including hair-associated, morphology-associated, and vascular-associated changes to the genitals. As women and men gain an insight into the conditions that can be treated with genital rejuvenation procedures, it is estimated that the demand for vaginal and scrotal rejuvenation will rise. It is thought that genital rejuvenation may therefore become the next frontier in medical and cosmetic dermatology.
New cosmetic formulation for the treatment of mild to moderate infantile atopic dermatitis
Atopic dermatitis is a chronic inflammatory skin disorder that is characterised by barrier disruption of the skin. A new cosmetic formulation on the market, called Dermacare, aims to enhance moisturisation and reinforce and repair the skin barrier.
This article aimed to demonstrate the safety and efficacy of this product by conducting a study on patients that had been diagnosed with mild to moderate atopic dermatitis.
The following were all assessed during the study: transepidermal water loss, clinical severity, desquamation index, patient/investigator global assessments, quality of life index, and tolerance. The product was applied daily and there were no reports of any adverse events.
The results after 14 days showed a significant decrease of transepidermal water loss. Furthermore, results after 28 days showed that the desquamation index had a reduction in 70% of patients, eczema area and severity index were reduced by 70.4% and skin irritation showed a significant reduction. Furthermore, it was shown that there was an overall worsening of symptoms when patients restarted their normal treatment.
In conclusion, the results suggested that regular use of Dermacare can reduce the risk of relapse and extend the steroid free treatment for patients suffering with atopic dermatitis.
Patients believe cosmetic procedures affect their quality of life: an interview study of patient-reported motivations
There is a wide variety of treatments to address the cosmetic concerns of patients; however, their motives for considering such procedures have not been explored.
The objective of this study was to develop a framework of categories to describe what motivates patients to undergo cosmetic procedures.
A total of 30 patients were interviewed. The majority of patient motivations for cosmetic procedures were correlated into eight categories: 1) mental and emotional health, 2) cosmetic appearance, 3) physical health, 4) work/school success, 5) social wellbeing, 6) cost/convenience, 7) procedural perceptions, and 8) timing of treatment.
The majority of the participants reported that their motivations were not related to a desire for physical beauty. Most participants wanted to avoid being self-conscious, enhance confidence, reduce the time and expense taken to conceal their perceived physical imperfections, and be perceived as capable at work.
The study acknowledges its limitations; primarily, that only English-speaking patients in the US were interviewed, which decreases the generalisability of the results. However, the findings suggest that many aesthetic patients are motivated to seek treatment in order to improve their physical and psychosocial wellbeing, highlighting that patients often have complex reasons for seeking aesthetic treatment.
Light-based home-use devices for hair removal: Why do they work and how effective are they?
This review provides an explanation of the evolution of laser/intense pulsed light (IPL) hair reduction modalities, ranging from professional devices to home-use devices. It also compared professional devices with home use appliances using published literature reviews.
For this study, an extensive literature search was performed to review laser/IPL hair reduction and to show what evidence is available to explain the mode of action of the professional's choice. Home use devices are very different when compared with the medical systems, both in terms of fluence per pulse and the biological mechanisms underlying hair removal.
The results of this review shows that long term application of a home use IPL appliance resulted in persistent hair reduction (80%) 1 year after last treatment. These results are consistent with previous reviews and clinical studies showing high efficacy of hair reduction on female legs, armpits and bikini zones, with full hair regrowth after four treatments following cessation of IPL procedures. The study also showed that there is a lack of hair removal devices available for use on very dark skin types, as well as a lower speed of treatment as compared with professional devices.
In conclusion, the researchers determined that there is sufficient evidence to suggest that home-use devices can be used as ‘companion’ products to professional, clinic-based IPL treatments.
Oral collagen supplementation: a systematic review of dermatological applications
There has been an increasing focus on nutraceuticals, such as collagen, in skincare regimes; however, there is a lack of regulation on quality, absorption and efficacy of the products available.
The aim of this study was to address this knowledge gap by reviewing he literature and assessing the available randomised-controlled trials that used collagen supplementation, in order to determine treatment efficacy regarding skin quality, anti-ageing effects and potential application in dermatology.
A literature search on PubMed was conducted and all findings were included. The review found 11 studies involving a total of 805 participants taking supplements. The findings showed promising results for short and long term use of oral collagen supplements for wound healing and skin ageing.
It was also found that Oral collagen supplements increased skin elasticity, hydration, and dermal collagen density. Collagen supplementation was found to be generally safde, with no reported adverse events. Further studies are needed to elucidate medical use in skin barrier diseases such as atopic dermatitis and to determine optimal doses.