doctor heal thyself

so perhaps i don't have stasis dermatitis after all. because on the advice of the rookie physician who first diagnosed me with the aforementioned condition, yesterday i visited a dermatologist up north (in thornhill) who came to a slightly different conclusion after examining my mildly discoloured lower limbs. no, according to the 20-year veteran of the skin wars, i am actually suffering from a related disorder known as schamberg's disease. (yes, like you, i became slightly alarmed when i first heard the term "disease" used to describe my present condition. but unlike you, i immediately inquired about how many months i had to live as a result.)

'hey sir, what exactly is schamberg's disease?' you are probably asking yourself at the moment. well, according to the friendly folks at the suspiciously-titled skinsite.com:

schamberg's disease, or progressive pigmented purpuric dermatitis, is a chronic discolouration of the skin which usually affects the legs and often spreads slowly. this disease is more common in males and may occur at any age from childhood onward. people who develop schamberg's disease have leaky blood vessel walls which allow red blood cells to slip through into the skin. the red cells in the skin then fall apart and release their iron which has a rust color. this accounts for the orange tint of the rash.

so here's my dilemma. i simply have no idea who to believe at this point. i mean, i just assumed that the first doctor i spoke to, a recent medical school graduate, would be fairly up-to-date on the latest diseases and treatments. but the grizzled specialist who saw me later and voiced a contrasting opinion seemed very confident in his diagnosis, as well. so who to believe? who to believe?

a few other points for your consideration. doctor one stated she was 99% certain that i was suffering from stasis dermatitis. doctor two looked at me hard when i asked him if he was absolutely certain about his diagnosis. doctor one showed me google images on her laptop of various legs and ankles affected by stasis dermatitis and most of them looked just like my mildly discoloured legs and ankles. doctor two had a medical school student by his side throughout the entire examination who nodded his head up and down whenever his mentor would utter the phrase 'schamberg's disease.' doctor one asked me to roll up my pants to the knee so that she could take a closer look at the nature of the discolouration. doctor two tried to locate a pulse in my foot (i know! my foot?) to more accurately measure the nature of the discolouration. doctor one attended the university of toronto. doctor two drives a mercedes. (i spotted his custom license plate in the parking lot.)

oh, and one more point. if doctor two is, in fact, correct in his assessment, i may not have to wear $100 elastic support stockings for the rest of my life. oh well, so much for miami beach.

"um, medicine is not an exact science." - wise doctor

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