Dermatology at NJMS
Dermatology handles disorders of skin, hair, nails and
accessible mucosal surfaces in both child and adult. The dermatologist
is both a primary care and a consultant physician with advanced
knowledge about skin disease whose efforts combine surgery, pediatrics,
internal medicine and pathology. Most often, the skin lesion itself
provides this experienced observer with the clues required for the
diagnosis. If there is question, or if the diagnosis of cancer is
entertained, a microscopic view (the skin biopsy) becomes mandatory.
However, the dermatologist is more than a skin pathologist, for
dermatology is as much a surgical specialty as a pathological or medical
one. Nevertheless, the basis of sound medicine is pathophysiology.
We recognize that dermatology is a visual specialty. The dermatologist
is the quintessential observer. But to examine the skin is not enough.
The observer looks at the patient. His appearance, his size, every
gesture and motion tell something about the patient. A diagnosis is not
simply the naming and cataloging of the disease. The one diseased is as
important as the disease itself. Through observation, the dermatologist
strives to grasp who is this individual, what are the signs of his
disease, what is his disease as fundamental alterations of anatomy and
physiology as well as its relation to his role and environment.To achieve this end, one should elicit a proper history, see and
understand all abnormal lesions of the skin, hair, nails and contiguous
mucous membranes, understand the clinical and pathological basis of
primary, secondary and special lesions of the skin, and interpret the
clinical signs, historical data and general observations.All of these data are then analyzed within the perspective of a
system of classification wherein the problem may be further understood.
Certain clinical and laboratory procedures may be utilized to more
precisely define these data. In the final analysis, the questions: Who
is this patient? What is his disease? What is the most prudent
management of this problem diagnostically and therapeutically? will be
answered.The skin is the largest body organ. It is composed of epidermis and
dermis. It protects the body in a variety of ways, retaining its
integrity physically, and providing sensory and thermoregulatory control
and immunologic surveillance. Focused work on the structure and
biochemistry of the epidermis as a permeability barrier has led to a
much increased understanding of the epidermis and its function, and
provide advanced therapeutic options to help patients.
DERMATOLOGY
New Jersey Medical School
185 South Orange Avenue, H 576
Newark, NJ 07103
973-972-6255
Fax 973-972-5877
roschwar@njms.rutgers.edu