Skin Surgery
Our dermatologist has extensive training and experience in performing dermatosurgery. He offers minimally invasive surgery for a range of conditions, such as cysts, scar revision, abscess, warts, lipomas, among others. He also specialises in diagnosing and managing skin cancer, including surgical treatments for both benign and cancerous skin lesions.
Skin tags
We offer a range of removal techniques to ensure the best aesthetic outcome. This is based on the nature, site and size of the lesions.
Varicose veins
Varicose veins are twisted, enlarged veins. The veins most commonly affected are those in your legs because standing and walking upright increases the pressure in the veins of your lower body. For many people, varicose veins and spider veins (a common, mild variation of varicose veins) are simply a cosmetic concern. For other people, varicose veins can cause aching pain and discomfort. Whatever the reason, we can treat it for you. Thanks to less invasive procedures, treatment does not involve a hospital stay or a long, uncomfortable recovery. Sclerotherapy is an effective method of treatment, which involves injecting the veins with a solution or foam that scars and closes the veins. In a few weeks, treated varicose veins should fade.
Hair filler
There are many causes of hair loss and one way of restoring hair volume is through the use of hair fillers. Hair fillers help prevent hair loss, strengthens hair follicles and promotes hair growth.
Hair transplant
Hair loss is a common problem amongst both men and women. A permanent solution to hair loss is hair transplantation. This involves the removal of individual hair follicles with specialised equipment. As no cutting and suturing are required, the cosmetic results are excellent in the donor area with no visible scarring. The grafts are then meticulously planted into the bald or thinning area of the scalp (recipient area). Within 24hrs small crusts will form on each graft that is then shed in approximately 2-3 weeks. The grafted hairs will start to grow after 2-4 months and the full result is achieved 1 year after the procedure. Pain is minimal; however, a minority of patients can experience mild swelling in the forehead area for a few days following surgery, which goes away in 2-4 days.
Excessive sweating
Hyperhidrosis is the clinical name for excessive and uncontrollable sweating. While it is necessary to sweat, some people sweat much more than required in certain areas. Most often, people sweat excessively from their palms, feet, underarms, or head. Because the skin is often wet, skin infections can develop. This problem can be treated with various medications, including Botox.
Vitiligo surgery
There are many diseases that can alter the colour of our skin, of which Vitiligo is one of the most devastating. This disease tends to start as white patches in different parts of the body, or on mucous membranes (tissue that line the inside of the mouth and nose) and can progressively turn the skin and the hair that grows on these parts completely white. In most people, the white patches become symmetrical, affecting similar areas on the right and left side of the body. The main goal of treating Vitiligo is to improve the appearance. There are a number of treatments for this condition with the most frequent being light therapies, which are UVB (NUVB) and excimer laser. However, surgical procedures are gaining popularity in the treatment of resistant yet stable cases. These are offered at Island Health and include:
- Punch Grafting which is a safe, simple and widely used technique. Its main purpose is to transfer small punches of normal skin to the depigmented area. Approximately 30% of the affected area is grafted then NUVB is used to stimulate proliferation of melanocyte.
- Suction Blistering which is a technique whereby the superficial layer of the skin is cleaved from the underlying layers producing a blister. The skin from the blisters are then transferred and grafted onto the abnormal Vitiligo area.
- Skin Needling which is a treatment that introduces a series of fine, sharp needles at the edges of the affected skin to create bruises. This damage encourages normal melanocytes to re-generate into the affected area.
- Smashed Skin Grafting which is a novel, simple method of Vitiligo surgery with fewer side effects and high patient satisfaction. The procedure involves removing the top layer of skin from a donor site, crushing it and grafting it onto the Vitiligo patch.
Phototherapy
Narrowband UVB is the most common form of phototherapy used to treat skin diseases. “Narrowband” refers to a specific wavelength of ultraviolet (UV) radiation. The narrowband range of UV radiation has proved to be the most beneficial component of natural sunlight for psoriasis. Narrowband UVB may also be used in the treatment of many other skin conditions including atopic eczema, vitiligo, pruritus, lichen planus, polymorphous light eruption, early cutaneous T-cell lymphoma and dermographism. Patients attend for phototherapy two to five times weekly.
Excimer laser
Excimer lasers can treat a variety of dermatological conditions including psoriasis, vitiligo, atopic dermatitis, alopecia areata and leukoderma. The advantages of monochromatic excimer laser over phototherapies of other kinds have been depicted as lower UV dose exposure, shorter course of therapy and for the most part, the possibility of being directed at distinct sites of skin rather than compromising the adjacent normal skin.
Warts Treatment
Warts are caused by the human papilloma virus (HPV) of which there are several subtypes which affect humans. Common in children of school age, warts can also affect otherwise healthy adults. A wart has the ability to hide from an otherwise normal immune system.
We have a range of treatments to combat warts including newer treatment which encourages the immune system to recognise the virally infected cells and eradicate them. We offer various creams and solutions, surgery, lasers and injections to treat warts as aggressively as possible.
LASER HAIR REMOVAL
Laser hair removal is a cosmetic procedure that uses a concentrated beam of light (laser) to remove unwanted hair. This light source heats and destroys hair follicles in the skin, which inhibits or delays future hair growth. Common areas to treat are the face, chest, legs, arms, underarms and bikini line.