![]() The lack of dermatologists of color is a problem as well: One study, published in October 2017 in the Journal of Investigative Dermatology Symposium Proceedings, found that only 3 percent of dermatologists identify as Black, and 4 percent as Hispanic. “Some of these conditions haven’t been fully explored from a research basis.” She adds that there needs to be more training, “not only for dermatologists but for primary care physicians, too, to understand and be able to appreciate the nuances of how skin disease presents in different skin tones and hues and with different backgrounds.” “Certain conditions are more prevalent or present more uniquely across different populations,” says Dr. Valerie Harvey, MD, MPH, a dermatologist and the president-elect of the Skin of Color Society - an education and advocacy group founded in 2004 - points out that there haven’t been enough clinical studies focused on skin conditions as they affect BIPOC groups. Of the 716 images in the registry, fewer than 2 percent showed images of Black patients and fewer than 5 percent showed images of Hispanic patients. Or consider an international registry published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology in July 2020 aimed at helping doctors diagnose “COVID toes” - a rash associated with COVID-19. This scenario and others like it play out again and again in doctors’ offices when people of color try to get help for illnesses that affect their skin. But the first physician you saw didn’t consider that your rash might be due to Lyme, because they’d been trained to look for a red-and-pink bull’s-eye - and that’s not what Lyme typically looks like on Black skin. With Lyme disease, early diagnosis and treatment are critical. You feel sick for months before you consult yet another physician, who finally runs the right tests and informs you, correctly, that you have Lyme disease. Weeks later, the discoloration finally fades but your muscles ache and you feel depleted, and another doctor guesses you have chronic fatigue syndrome. The first doctor you see sends you home with a prescription for a steroid cream, which seems to do nothing. ![]() You notice a rash on your lower back where the skin, normally an even brown, is darker and slightly violet-tinged in some areas. ![]() Lately you’re feeling fatigued and getting more headaches than usual. ![]()
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