People can be allergic to environmental substances and not even know. Nuts, dust mites, pollen, grasses, mold and animal dander are all common allergens. There are now very sophisticated tests through a simple blood drawing, which identify multiple food and environmental allergens such that one can know what to avoid. People can also be very allergic to certain flowers such as oleander. Being tested and subsequently treated can help prevent serious rashes and allergic reactions, which can close the airway and result in an inability to breathe. Knowing what one is allergic to may help with one’s eczema, which is a dry itchy skin condition seen in people with allergies. Hives, the medical term being urticaria, is also frequently a skin manifestation of severe allergies.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
If sweating is a problem for you, consider Dysport or Botox injections under your arms. These injections can significantly minimize underarm wetness. The effect can last several months. It is a wonderful solution for individuals who perspire a lot, especially in these warm summer months. It is also very effective for increased perspiration due to anxiety. These treatments help to avoid unwanted perspiration stains on clothing and make people feel more comfortable in stressful social situations.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
Don’t neglect your back! Because many people don’t look at their backs, they just assume that nothing is happening there and that their back skin is fine. However, when I do a total body exam, a careful look at my patient’s back is very important. Atypical moles, which may be precursors of malignant melanomas, as well as growths that can become basal and squamous cell carcinomas need special attention. In addition, significant amounts of sun damage is often seen on the back. In many cases, treating this damaged skin can prevent future malignancies.
Furthermore, the back is also frequently a site for breakouts, usually very large, and with a tendency towards scarring. If you have not had a body scan which included a thorough look at your back, I highly recommend it. Skin on the back can be treated very similarly as I treat skin on the face, hands and arms.
So don’t neglect your back in taking care of your total skin!
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
If you forgot to apply your sunscreen and now you have a red face and/or body after being out in the sun, the first thing to do is cool the area with some ice packs as much as possible.
Next, as soon as possible, put on some non-prescription 1% hydrocortisone cream. Reapply a thin layer of the cream as needed for the burning sensation or continued redness. If the skin blisters, you can clean the blister gently with some rubbing alcohol; then, take a pin or needle, flame it to sterilize and gently poke the base of the blister in one area so that the fluid within can be gently removed.
If the sunburn becomes painful, or the skin is very warm to touch, then two aspirin or two non-prescription ibuprofen tablets every four to six hours for two days may alleviate these symptoms.
For any areas where the skin becomes broken or raw following blister formation, you can apply some non-prescription bacitracin or polysporin ointment on the surface of the involved area. Do not apply neosporin or neomycin ointment as the antibiotic neomycin causes frequent severe allergic reactions on the skin.
If in spite of following these instructions the skin becomes raw or develops honey-colored crusts, it could mean the beginning of an infection known as impetigo or cellulitis. If this should occur, then it is best to be evaluated in a dermatologist’s office.
When your sunburn dissolves, the skin may peel. This can be very itchy. If this occurs, use your favorite moisturizer throughout the day, especially on wet skin after showering.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
Aging hands are treated much in the same way as an aging face. Frequently the problem with aging hands is sun damage. Sun damage results in brown spots, red spots and thickened scaly skin. The skin of the hands also lose elasticity with age. The sun damage can be treated with acid peels, microdermabrasion, as well as liquid nitrogen. The acid superficially destroys the pigmentation. The microdermabrasion gently causes exfoliation. The liquid nitrogen freezes the skin to destroy the unwanted sun-induced spots. It is very important in a total body program to minimize the signs of aging to include treatment of the hands. Carefully removing sun and age damaged skin from the hands can sometimes make hands look 10 or 20 years younger.
In addition to therapy that can be accomplished in the office, our Sal-Hydro Fade Formula can peel and bleach many surface skin lesions at home when applied two to three times per day. Even after office treatments, my patients are given Sal-Hydro for use at home to further enhance the effects of treatment.
In African-American skin, pigmented lesions (spots) can be even more noticeable and Sal-Hydro can be used up to four or even six times per day until the desired lightening is achieved for maximal effectiveness.
Likewise, Asian skin frequently pigments darker, and the in-office procedures are the same. The Sal-Hydro used in conjunction with the procedures is also extremely effective.
Moisturizers, especially our Multivitamin Cream, can be applied to minimize the noticeable effects of the peeling process.
In certain cases where thinning skin on the surface of the hands is very noticeable, it is possible to inject a filler to increase the density of those areas. This is a procedure that is done in the office and only on select patients.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
Actinic keratoses are sun damage spots that can appear anyplace on the body but especially on the face, arms and legs. They can look like red or brown scaly or elevated lesions on the skin. Seborrheic keratoses (“age spots”), seen in mature skin, tend to be thicker and slightly wart-like and vary in color from skin tone to dark brown. They also tend to appear on skin that has been exposed to the sun.
The best treatment for actinic and seborrheic keratoses is destruction of the lesions with either liquid nitrogen or acid therapy in a dermatologist’s office. If the lesions are not very elevated, our Sal-Hydro peeling and bleaching medicine can be very helpful when applied twice a day at home to peel and help fade the lesions over time. Shaving can be done as usual. Be sure to use a clean disposable razor each time you shave to avoid infection.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
With the summer upon us, we are all tempted to go to the beach, enjoy the outdoors and the sun. There are a few things you should remember. When choosing your sunscreen, consider the sun protection factor or SPF. This number is useful in determining how long an individual can stay in the sun without burning. The SPF multiplied by the number of minutes it would take for that individual to burn without sunscreen gives the total amount of minutes he or she can stay in the sun with the sunscreen. For a person who burns after 10 minutes without sunscreen, an SPF of 30 would allow him or her to stay in the sun for 300 minutes. Since it is unlikely that someone will get more than five hours of sun in one day, I believe an SPF of 30 to be sufficient.
Furthermore, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has long ago determined that 15 was a complete block. My feeling is that in southern California, it is prudent to go a little bit higher. I recommend a 30 for people living in sunny climates. I do not recommend anything greater than 30 due to the fact that it must be remembered that sunscreens contain chemicals, and chemicals applied to the skin can be absorbed into the body. There is no need to go beyond 30.
Sunscreen has been used significantly for over 40 years, and my feeling is that staying with the original ingredients that have been proven effective and safe is much better than changing to a sunblock with a new chemical that has been on the market for only a short period of time. My concerns are that sometime in the future these newer chemicals might show some toxicity which we know that the older chemicals do not have. Therefore, I think an SPF 30 is more than adequate for adults and babies.
I use the terms sunblock and sunscreen interchangeably. Sunblock/sunscreen should be applied a half hour before going into the sun so the ingredients can be absorbed into the skin and should also be reapplied after swimming, heavy perspiration or showering in order to be effective.
Absolutely. If you are going camping, your skin will be exposed to unusual conditions. If you want to protect your skin, you should always apply a sunblock such as our Bussell Skin Care Sunblock SPF 30. A hat and sunglasses should also be worn because of sun damage to the eyes that can cause eye conditions such as cataracts.
Campers are also exposed to insect bites, poison ivy and poison oak. Insect repellent can sometimes irritate your skin. I advise spraying clothing with insect repellent rather that spraying your skin. Do this outside in a well-ventilated area. If you are allergic to insect bites or stings, I advise bringing with you a dose of epinephrine in the form of an Epi-pen, but you should consult a physician to understand how to use it. Individuals who are allergic to bee stings should always camp with an Epi-pen in their backpacks if they are severely allergic. It is always wise to have an emergency number you can call in case of a severe allergic reaction during your camping trip.
Many people are allergic to poison ivy and poison oak to some degree. Poison ivy is generally found on the East coast and poison oak on the West coast. The type of allergic reaction caused by these plants is known as a rhus dermatitis. If you are camping, you should bring along with you a bottle of calamine lotion to soothe skin rashes caused by these plants. Make sure you know how to identify these plants in order to avoid them. I also suggest keeping your lower legs covered with socks and long pants.
Poison Ivy
A little known way of getting a severe poison oak or poison ivy rash is from campfires. Be careful not to put wood containing these plants into a campfire as the smoke can cause a very severe allergic reaction as it tends to diffuse all over the skin’s surface. Carrying antihistamines to take for a poison oak/poison ivy reactions or reactions to insect bites can be very helpful.
Campers and hikers may also find that they perspire in their shoes. This can lead to an ideal environment for fungus or athlete’s foot to thrive. Changing socks as soon as they feel moist, adding foot powder in the socks and shoes and wearing shoes that breathe can all help reduce the chances of a fungus infection developing during your trip.
If you are hiking in an area known to have snakes, try to stay on the hiking path and wear high top shoes or boots. Also bring along a little emergency kit filled with first aid supplies, antibacterial wipes and Tylenol, aspirin or ibuprofen for pain, keeping in mind that aspirin or ibuprofen can cause a bleeding wound to clot less easily.
An easy technique to encourage whiskers to grow out of the skin and to avoid ingrown hairs is to liberally soap up a wash cloth with our Bussell Skin Care antibacterial liquid soap, and use it to vigorously scrub the entire face, paying attention to the whisker areas. Doing so will raise the hairs and help lift them out of the skin’s surface so that shaving afterwards becomes more complete. In many cases, this will completely resolve the problem. In more stubborn or long-standing conditions, topical and/or oral antibiotic therapy, injections into cysts with a mild anti-inflammatory medicine, and gently removing ingrown hairs as a source of infection can be easily done during an office visit.
Whether you use a wet razor or an electric razor really depends on your skin’s preference. Try each and determine which your skin prefers. Remember to toss wet razors frequently, ideally after each shave, but at least twice a week.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
Many of the dark spots seen on African-American skin are known as post inflammatory hyperpigmentation. This is usually caused by old acne scars or irritation of any kind to the skin. Many of the acne scars are self-induced as a result of picking or scratching at breakouts beneath the skin surface. Application of a cortisone cream is helpful in shrinking the unwanted scar tissue. Sal-Hydro Fade Formula™ is excellent in diminishing the darker color changes. African-American skin usually does not respond well to over the counter bleaching preparations. In addition to the topical use of Sal-Hydro Fade Formula™, I also recommend weekly trichloroacetic acid peels within my office.
– Dr. Bussell
Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants
433 N. Camden Drive, Suite 805 Beverly Hills, CA 90210 | 310-550-7661
Letantia Bussell, M.D., board certified dermatologist, obtained her undergraduate degree at the University of Southern California (Los Angeles) and did her residency at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA). Dr. Bussell and Beverly Hills Dermatology Consultants treat patients with all skin types and skin conditions and provide cosmetic and anti-aging procedures to southern California and the areas of Los Angeles, Westwood, West Hollywood, Santa Monica, Brentwood, Encino, Sherman Oaks and Tarzana. Most insurance accepted, call regarding questions about a specific PPO. Book your consultation today: 310-550-7661
