Does it Itch? Is it Painful? Is it Dry? Dermatoses Symptoms Don't Lie

Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, MSCI, clinical associate professor of medicine, Rosalind Franklin University Chicago Medical School, in Chicago, IL, made the comment that "symptoms never lie" in a conversation about recognizing and treating skin conditions in primary care and particularly in patients with skin of color.

"Even if you don't know morphologically exactly what you're seeing, asking some questions about the skin, 'Is it itchy? Is it painful? Is it dry?' Symptoms can sometimes be the answer you need when signs might otherwise be hard to see."

Chovatiya spoke with Patient Care^© at the American Academy of Dermatology meeting in early March about the reality that clinicians across specialties are sometimes "a little more attuned to looking at lighter tone skin...and we don't think about the manifestations of some of these [dermatologic] conditions in darker tone skin, but symptoms never lie." So, if you suspect an eruption could be eczema or early signs of psoriasis, ask some simple questions about the patient's experience and the picture may begin to get clearer. He offers more details in the short video above.

Chovatiya is also founder and director of the Center for Medical Dermatology + Immunology Research in Chicago, IL, and recognized internationally for his research into the intersection of cutaneous immunology and inflammatory disease. He has a particular interest in optimizing patient-centered care, understanding chronic disease burden, especially in understudied inflammatory diseases, exploring health and social disparities, and improving care across diverse skin types.

See below for more of the Patient Care interview with Chovatiya.

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Melanin Isn't Everything: Skin Physiology Does Not Conform to Socially Defined Variables, Explains Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, MSCI

What We Mean When We Say "Skin of Color" in Dermatology: A Closer Look with Raj Chovatiya, MD, PhD, MSCI