Yale Medicine Magazine

Autoimmune diseases, such as scleroderma, that attack the skin can be deadly and disfiguring. The superficial marks borne by people with these conditions can indicate disease inside the body. In some cases, skin changes can even predict the disease’s occurrence. Yale researchers are working to understand the relationships between autoimmune disease and skin problems and how mapping them can help clinicians improve patient care.

The causes of acne skin lesions are still unclear, as are their relationship to underlying immunological conditions. Treatments exist for the physical damage, and for the psychological trauma of scarring.

YSM's department of dermatology is a place where specialists come together to practice cutting-edge interdisciplinary research. Experts pool scientific insights and clinical experience in a professional space where all perspectives are welcome.

Telemedicine and Telehealth have been feasible options for patients for years. A study highlighted dermatology's successful pandemic-era transition to distance care, increasing throughput and giving dermatologists more options to see patients.

Scientists at YSM are keeping track of social media trends, looking for signs of emergent symptoms or conditions that may be good targets for research. Self-diagnosed patients on Facebook helped start meaningful research into "Long COVID."

In recent times, it has become clear that the skin is an important window into the human body's health. Many systemic diseases can be detected by dermatologists — sarcoidosis, lupus, lymphoma, fungal infections, and melanoma, to name some.

Clinicians, educators, and researchers at Yale are working hard to make up for decades of neglect toward dermatological conditions and skin diseases as they manifest in darker skin tones.

The Yale Center for Asylum Medicine brings people seeking asylum in the U.S. in and takes them through a clinic to evaluate them for medical conditions tied to their cases. This can improve their odds of being granted asylum dramatically.

Review of a book by school of medicine faculty member Christine Ko, whose experience as a patient and careful study of life lessons helped her develop a protocol for improving the quality of doctor-patient relationships.

Yale School of Medicine Dean Nancy J. Brown discusses how the Department of Dermatology relies on interdisciplinary research to burnish its reputation for excellence as well as working with the community to address health equity.