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      DERMATOLOGIC SURGERY has yet to gain awareness of significant proportion in India. SKINSTREET.NET is a site designed to review the development of dermatologic surgery in India and discuss various dermatosurgical techniques, their indications and outcomes.

         Long term oral antibiotics with topical medication as a treatment for acne is advocated by majority of the dermatologists. 'Pimples' are not 'normal' in adolescence, hormonal changes do play a role in etiology of acne but they can be treated. If people who suffer from acne understand their skin type and take proper care as advised, they can save themselves from a lot of unwanted consequences due to long standing and uncontrolled acne.

        Dermatologic surgergical techniques like ultra thin skin grafting has generated considerable hope in treatment of vitiligo, a skin diseases which may not respond satisfactorily when treated only with medications and PUVA.

         Rural India has a peculiar tradition of facial and body tattooing. The tattoo may involve a 'beauty spot', a cluster of them or at times engraving names or complex designs anywhere on the face or body. These tattoos though fascinating, soon become objects of monotony and frustration. Hence, many people with tattoos wish to have them removed. Again as tradition goes, burning with hot metal rod, application of acid and caustic substances (chuna) has resulted in ugly scars, pigmentation & at times hypertrophic scar and keloids. Dermatologic surgeons have developed refined techniques for 'skin resurfacing' to treat conditions like tattoos, acne scars, smallpox scars etc. Recent development is combining various techniques like laser and dermabrasion.

         Unwanted hair on the face and elsewhere on the body have been an object of disgust for many people, specially among aesthetically conscious ladies. There exist many modalities of hair removal like threading, waxing, shaving, plucking, depilatories, abrasives like pumice stone but are temporary. Laser hair removal techniques may be sought as better alternatives.

         Common skin problems like warts and skin tags can be treated with electrosurgery. Refined electrosurgical techniques give good result with minimal scarring. Newer technique of Radiosurgery has the advantage of a 'knife like' sharpness while cutting with no charring of the surrounding tissue. Face lift without surgery with Radiofrequency equipment is a new and fascinating application.

         Light at the end of the tunnel is growing brighter for people with alopecia. Before one starts treatment for hair loss, it is very important to know the cause, only then will it be possible to treat hair loss effectively i.e. stop hair fall, help re-growth of lost hair and prevent or retard further hair loss. Newer medicines to treat hair loss and improved techniques of hair transplantation have shown encouraging results.

         Cosmetic counselling remains the most underutilized aspect of dermatosurgery. It is unfortunate that commercial strategies have flooded the market with cosmetic products of questionable standards. Ethical preservation of aesthetics is the ideology here at skinstreet.net. Dermatosurgeons advise you to discover your 'skin type' and respect its behavior to dryness, humidity, sunlight, cosmetics, perfumes and many such factors that might inflict insults which may take a long time to revert or heal.

          SKINSTREET.NET has been conceived by the author to educate people about the role of surgery in skin diseases, discuss the rationale behind various dermatosurgical procedures and their advantages.