New chair in Ethnodermatology established at University of Toronto
The university will support future research and education for skin of colour, through a corporate endowment (1,300 words, 6 minutes)
The University of Toronto’s Temerty Faculty of Medicine has established the AbbVie Chair in Ethnodermatology, supported by the biopharmaceutical company.
“The Chair will drive collaborative academic research [in the area of ethnodermatology], which is something that is lacking,” said Dr. Christina Pelizon, Country Medical Director for AbbVie in Canada, in an interview with Skin Spectrum Weekly. “I think, very importantly, the chair will provide advanced training to the next generation of practitioners. . . And also, we're hoping that establishing this chair will lead to outreach programs that will better inform care in Canada and hopefully across the globe. Maybe we can be pioneers.”
According to a press release, the establishment of the chair comes in response to growing calls from clinicians, researchers and patients to address longstanding gaps and inequities in dermatological research, education, and patient care.
“Canada is one of the most diverse, multicultural countries in the world, and that diversity will continue to grow,” said Dr. Pelizon. “Statistics Canada has demographic projections that the proportion of Canadians who belong to a visible minority group will have increased tremendously by 2031.”
She said Statistics Canada predicted that 63% of the citizens of Toronto would be visible minorities by that year, 59% in Vancouver, and potentially 39% in Montreal.
“At AbbVie and the University of Toronto, we believe that it's very important that all Canadians have equal, fair, inclusive care,” so the documented knowledge gaps relating to the appearance and management of skin disease in patients with skin of colour is a serious concern, she said.
“The vast majority of dermatology research, education and practice has been based on our understanding of white skin. But white skin is not the same as skin of colour in many ways. The biochemistry, biology, and even the diseases that affect the skin are different,” Dr. Pelizon said.
Dr. Pelizon said she hopes this new chair will drive collaborative academic research and provide advanced training to the next generation of practitioners. She said she also hopes these collaborations will become international, informing better, more equitable care in Canada and worldwide.
From the literature on dermatology research and education in skin of colour
Skin-of-color article representation in dermatology literature 2009-2019: Higher citation counts and opportunities for inclusion
This research article compared the number of skin-of-colour (SOC)-related papers indexed in PubMed from 2009 to 2019 to the total number of papers indexed in that period. They found that the number of SOC-related articles steadily increased, but the overall number is still low.
The authors write that the ongoing diversification of the dermatology workforce with trainees interested in SOC may also lead to more SOC publications. Therefore, supporting these trainees is essential to improving this field.
It's not all White: Implicit racial bias in imagery used in plastic surgery resident education
This study categorized colour photographs, graphics, and videos featured in the American Society of Plastic Surgery "Course Materials" using the Fitzpatrick scale (I-II, III-IV, or V-VI) by six reviewers.
Each reviewer assessed an average of 1,861 photographs and 237 graphics. They found that 82% of the photos and 97% of the graphics were categorized as Fitzpatrick I or II.
The authors conclude that their data reveals an opportunity to improve racial representation in resident education.
The Eumelanin Human Skin Colour Scale: A proof-of-concept study
Noting that there is no current standard for describing the diversity of human constitutive skin colour, the authors of this paper aimed to develop one.
Through a series of monthly focus group discussions over seven months, a multi-disciplinary group of specialists developed a five-point scale for describing the full spectrum of human constitutive skin colour. As part of their discussions, they covered the limitations and unmet needs of the current terminology, practical considerations for what a new vocabulary would need to do, the current biological understanding of skin colour, and ways of evaluating skin colour.
The scale they developed uses Eumelanin, the dominant chromophore of human skin, to evaluate skin colour. The categories of the scale are Eumelanin Low (EML) <25; Eumelanin Intermediate Low (EMIL), with a Melanin Index (MI) between 25 and 50; Eumelanin Intermediate (EMI) MI between 50 and 75; Eumelanin Intermediate High (EMIH) MI between 75 and 100; and Eumelanin High (EH) with MI of 100 or higher.
Photographic representation of skin tones in three dermatology journals
In this study, researchers evaluated the representation of skin tones in three dermatology journals commonly used in resident education and journal clubs. These were the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, JAMA Dermatology and Pediatric Dermatology. They found that overall only 5.6%, 4.1% and 8.3% of the images in those journals, respectively, depicted skin of Fitzpatrick skin Types V or VI.
VIDEO: Dermatology and skin of colour, health disparities panel
At the intersection of skin and society
Recently published, Unsettling the Great White North: Black Canadian History, is a book of 21 essays that explore the diverse and often oppressive and violent experiences of persons of African descent across Canada’s history.
“It’s meant to push boundaries, or at least force us to think about those boundaries—it’s by no means a polite representation of Canadian history,” said the book’s co-editor Funké Aladejebi, PhD, in a press release. Dr. Aladejebi is an assistant professor in the University of Toronto’s Faculty of Arts & Science, Department of History.
The book contains essays on both historical and contemporary events. Its contributors come from a range of disciplines including history, geography, sociology, gender studies, cultural studies, and law.
“The book really does live up to its name,” said Dr. Aladejebi. “It desires to unsettle the way we think about Canada as a white space both figuratively and metaphorically. It seeks to unsettle our understandings of Canadian history and Black Canadian studies.”
According to the release, the decision to include essays that extend from the historical to the contemporary was done deliberately to show how the history of the Black experience in Canada has led to and continues to influence current patterns of Black settlement and belonging in Canada.
“Black Canadian history is not something that happened in the past—it’s constantly changing and evolving,” said Dr. Aladejebi.
According to the release, the book is designed for students, post-secondary professors looking for content, community leaders, and the general public.
More information on Unsettling the Great White North: Black Canadian History can be found at this link:
This week
April is Genocide Remembrance, Condemnation and Prevention Month in Canada
April 10-16 is National Medical Laboratory Week in Canada
Something to think about in the week ahead…
In two weeks
There will be no edition of Skin Spectrum Weekly for April 18, due to the Easter long weekend. Watch for our return on April 25 with Dr. Jaggi Rao’s talk on teledermatology from the 7th annual Skin Spectrum Summit.
Coming soon
Chronicle Companies is hosting the 2022 Summit on Atopic Dermatitis on April 23, 2022.
This one-day virtual medical event was developed to address an unmet need for education on the incidence of and latest therapies for atopic dermatitis (AD) among dermatologists and general practitioners.
Co-chairs Drs. Neil Shear and Marissa Joseph will lead a discussion of the most current treatments for all disease severities. The conference will also emphasize AD diagnosis in skin of colour and will provide resources for patient and caregiver support.
Registration for the Summit on Atopic Dermatitis is still open and available. As a Skin Spectrum Weekly subscriber, your registration is free if you use this link.