Dermatology

Mission

The mission of the Boston University Department of Dermatology is to serve as a leader in education, research, and patient care for skin health and diseases of the skin. We are committed to excellence in patient care, teaching, and generating new knowledge about normal and diseased skin, and are committed to innovation in all of our endeavors. We strive to meet the highest standards of academic excellence and place particular emphasis on innovation in our research and teaching programs as well as clinical care, with a specific focus on caring for underserved urban communities and a diverse patient population. Our ultimate goals are to study basic mechanisms underlying the development of skin diseases, leading to novel approaches in their diagnosis and treatment, and to provide comprehensive and culturally competent dermatologic care to all our patients.

Overview

The Department of Dermatology at Boston University provides dermatology care to inpatients and outpatients at Boston Medical Center, patients in Boston neighborhood health centers, the Jamaica Plain Veterans Administration Hospital, and Commonwealth Avenue clinics, as well as additional clinics in the Greater Boston area. Faculty use eConsult Telehealth to provide dermatology advice to health providers. The department occupies a 36,000 sq. ft. building on the Boston University Medical Campus adjacent to the Chobanian & Avedisian School of Medicine, School of Public Health, Henry M. Goldman School of Dental Medicine, and Boston Medical Center, the principal teaching hospital. Faculty and clinical associates offer expertise in practically all subspecialty areas within dermatology, including: skin oncology, photopheresis, dermatologic surgery, rheumatology-dermatology, phototherapy, laser and cosmetic surgery, alopecia, skin ulcers, wound healing, pediatric dermatology, acne, gynecology-dermatology, disorders of pigmentation and ethnic skin, psoriasis, eczematous disorders, and autoimmune diseases. Departmental researchers are leaders in fields such as malignant melanoma, cutaneous lymphoma, non-melanoma skin cancer, wound healing, diseases of the hair, rheumatologic-dermatology, MOHS surgery, laser medicine, and diseases of skin of ethnic origin.

The Dermatopathology section evaluates over 15,000 biopsy specimens annually, utilizing immunofluorescence, immunoperoxidase, and state-of-the-art equipment, including a virtual slide scanner. Laboratory services feature a computerized video image analysis system, as well as access to a confocal microscope, an electron microscope, and advanced laser-capture microdissection on campus.

Additionally, the section maintains an extensive set of teaching slides and a 10-headed teaching microscope with a video monitor. It provides ACGME-approved training in dermatopathology, along with specialized training opportunities for international students.

The section also engages in research collaborations with members of the dermatology department and the broader institution. It is actively involved in multiple projects with external collaborators and industry partners.

The department provides dermatologic training to:

• medical students
• dermatology residents
• residents in primary care, family medicine, internal medicine, and pediatrics (lectures and clinical rotations)
• practicing primary care physicians
• clinical fellows in cutaneous oncology, rheumatology-dermatology, and dermatopathology
• pre- and postdoctoral research fellows in cell and molecular biology and preventive oncology