The Department of Dermatology & Venerology of West China Hospital, Sichuan University, founded in the early 1950s and with a history of over 60 years, is a regional center for standardized diagnosis and treatment of complicated dermatological diseases in Western China. It is the state clinical key specialty under the construction of National Health Commission and one of the most important bases for clinical practice, research, education and talent training in southwestern China. According to the data of the Hospital Management Institute of Fudan University (one Chinese statistical authority), the department has been listed in the top 10 of the Best Dermatology Specialist in China for 4 consecutive years (2015-2018).
There are 33 doctors in the department, among them there are 7 senior experts, 7 professors and 7 associate professors. It serves as the deputy chair organization of Chinese Dermatologist & Venerologist Society of Chinese Medical Doctor Association. Many of the doctors serve as vice chairmen, standing committee members, members, group leaders and other important positions in the Chinese Society of Dermatology and Chinese Dermatologist & Venerologist Society of Chinese Medical Doctor Association.
The Department now has 4 Ph.D./M.D. tutors and 10 master tutors and consists of six sub-specialties, namely medical cosmetology and cosmetics, skin-associated immune diseases, fungal and infectious dermatological diseases, clinicopathological study of skin tumor, genetic skin diseases and dermatologic surgery. In addition, the department sets up a number of disease-centered medical teams, such as the onychosis team, the hair disease team, the rare disease group. After years of teaching practice, the department has a group of clinically experienced instructors, and about 20 candidates for Ph.D. or master’s degrees graduated every year.
Medical cosmetology and cosmetics: The sub-specialty has done substantial work on the pathogenesis, diagnosis and evaluation of skin aging and skin disfiguring diseases, playing a leading role in the clinical safety and efficacy evaluation of cosmetics, the diagnosis and treatment of skin diseases caused by cosmetics. The team members established the first and the only skin biology engineering laboratory and cosmetic engineering technology research center in China.
Skin-associated Immune Diseases: The sub-specialty focuses on the studies of allergy, inflammatory skin diseases, psoriasis, autoimmune bullous diseases, autoimmune connective tissue diseases, etc. A series of mature and perfect cell, human and animal models, as well as molecular biological technology platforms for flow cytometry, immunofluorescence, real-time fluorescence quantitative PCR, immunoblotting, immunohistochemistry, etc, have been established.
Fungal and Infectious Skin Disease: The world's first reported case of infantile hemangioma treated by itraconazole demonstrated that itraconazole is a safe, convenient and affordable new choice of treatment for vascular hyperplasia. New evidence based dermatoscopy-centered platform of dermatology, fungal, bacterial and viral infectious skin disease treatment, education, research and innovation have been set up. Several academic papers have been published in the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology (JAAD) and the British Journal of Dermatology (BJD), comprising of 5 cover images in BJD. The diagnosis and treatment of malassezia-induced skin diseases are among the best known internationally recognized sub-specialty.
Clinicopathological study of skin tumors: As the vice leader of the pathology unit of the Chinese Society of Dermatology, the sub-specialty conducts direct immunofluorescence diagnostic of skin bullous diseases in the whole Sichuan province. The specialty operates not only the clinicopathological study of skin lymphoproliferative diseases, but also the molecular biology research on its pathogenesis and early diagnosis.
Genetic skin diseases: The genodermatosis sub-specialty group first reported in China SLC39A4 mutations in patients with acrodermatitis enteropathica, cases of autosomal recessive hyper-IgE syndrome carrying DOCK8 mutations, the NIPAL4 mutation causing non-bullous congenital ichthyosiform erythroderma and the DSG1 mutation resulting in non-epidermolytic palmoplantar keratoderma.
Dermatologic Surgery: The sub-specialty conducts more than 10,000 surgery every year, including more than 3,000 detail suture technique operations, around 300 nail operations and over 150 hair transplant operations. Detail suture technique, hair transplantation, nail surgery and nail disease treatment in the sub-specialty are among the best nationwide. Multiple speeches have been delivered by the sub-specialty doctors in the World Congress of Dermatology, the International Society for Dermatologic and Aesthetic Surgery, the annual meeting of Chinese Society of Dermatology, and the annual meeting of China Dermatologist Association.
