The dermatological exam is done with the objective of verifying the cause of lesions present on the skin and is done by the dermatologist in his office. However, the dermatological examination, without diagnostic purposes, can be done at home. It is enough to undress completely and with the help of a mirror carefully observe the whole body looking for new signs, spots, scars, flaking or itching. One should not forget to observe any place, such as the nape, behind the ears and between the toes.
If you notice any changes, it is worth going to a dermatologist, to have the opinion of a professional. The dermatologist is the doctor who specializes in skin diseases and can diagnose them more easily, indicating the best form of treatment.
How the dermatological examination is done
Dermatological exams do not take long and are mandatory for users of public swimming pools, and private clubs, and are also frequently requested in gyms.
The examination is done in the dermatologist's office and occurs in two stages:
- Anamnesis, in which the doctor will ask questions about the injury, such as: when it started, when the first symptom appeared, what the symptom is like (itches, hurts or burns), if the injury has spread to another part of the body and if the injury has evolved. Physical examination, in which the doctor will observe the person and the injury, paying attention to the characteristics of the injury, such as color, consistency, type of the injury (plaque, nodule, spots, scar), shape (in target, linear, rounded), disposition (grouped, scattered, isolated) and distribution of the lesion (localized or disseminated).
Through a simple dermatological examination, it is possible to discover various diseases such as chilblains, foot insects, ringworm, herpes, psoriasis and other more serious ones such as melanoma. It is through careful observation that the doctor may suspect a sign, spots on the skin or a mole.
Auxiliary diagnostic tests
Some diagnostic tests can be used to complement the dermatological examination, when the physical examination is not sufficient to determine the cause of the injury, they are:
- Biopsy, in which part of the injured region or signal is removed so that the characteristics can be evaluated and the diagnosis can be closed. Biopsy is widely used to diagnose skin cancer, for example. See what are the first signs of skin cancer. Scraped, in which the doctor scrapes the lesion to be taken to the laboratory for analysis. This test is usually done to diagnose yeast infections. See what are the 8 diseases caused by fungi. Wood's light, which is widely used to evaluate the spots present on the skin and make the differential diagnosis with other diseases through the fluorescence pattern, such as erythrasma, in which the lesion fluoresces in a bright orange-red tone, and vitiligo, which turns bright blue. See what can cause vitiligo and how to treat it. Cytodiagnosis of Tzanck, which is done to diagnose lesions caused by viruses, such as herpes, which usually manifests itself through blisters. Therefore, the material used to perform this diagnostic examination is the blisters.
These tests help the dermatologist to define the cause of the injury and to establish the appropriate treatment for the patient.
