We’re in the midst of a home renovation. We only needed kitchen drawers that would open and close, so we gutted the entire kitchen and are remodeling about half the house. It’s exciting and dusty.
Along with new drawers (and cabinets, countertops, appliances, and dining room), we’re getting new wiring and updated audio-visual equipment. The television will be bigger, the sound system will be bigger, and the signal from the cable company will be bigger. And there will be a new device to control it all.
The prospect of a new control device at home terrifies me as much as when our medical center’s administration tells us they are updating our information technology system to help us, to make our lives better, and to make us more productive. Already we have a television at home with Roku and other devices that take an astrophysicist (or child) to figure out. New technology moves us forward, but it isn’t always a smooth ride.
In this issue, we feature several new technologies. We have a report on noninvasive diagnosis of melanoma (which fits nicely in with a special report on the recent study on sunscreen ingredient absorption; page 40 and page 8, respectively). There’s an interview with Drs Cotliar and Armstrong on their National Institute of Health-funded teledermatology study for patients with eczema (page 36). And we interview with Drs Merola and Gottlieb on the latest updates on diagnosing psoriatic arthritis (page 27).
Keeping up with new technology is becoming a full-time job. Fortunately, we also have an article for you discussing work-life balance, too (page 47).
Steven R. Feldman, MD, PhD
Chief Medical Editor
