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Scars What is a scar? A scar is the body's natural way of healing and replacing lost or damaged skin. It's often made of fibrous tissue. Scars may form due to infections, surgery, injuries, or inflammation of tissue. They may appear anywhere on the body. A scar may look flat

Staphylococcal Scalded Skin Syndrome (SSSS) in Children What is staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome in children? Staphylococcal scalded skin syndrome (SSSS) is a serious skin infection. The infection causes peeling skin over large parts of the body. It looks like the skin has

Skin Tests What are skin tests? Skin tests may be done to diagnose rashes, moles, skin allergies, bacterial or fungal skin infections, and other conditions and diseases. Skin tests are also done to tell the difference between cancer (malignant) cells and noncancer (benign)

Treating Aged or Sun-Damaged Skin What is photoaging? Too much sun exposure can cause premature aging of your skin. This premature wrinkling and skin damage from sun exposure is called photoaging. Photoaging is not like natural aging. It causes: Coarse, dry skin. Freckling and

Warts What are warts? Warts are common skin growths. They can spread to other parts of the body and to other people. Most warts go away over a long time with no treatment. There are many kinds of warts. The most common kinds are: Common warts. These grow on the fingers, elbows

Shingles What is shingles? Shingles (herpes zoster) is a common infection of the nerves. It's caused by a virus. Shingles set off a painful rash or small blisters on an area of skin. It can appear anywhere on the body, but it typically appears on only one side of the face or body

Overview of Diabetes Complications What complications are linked to diabetes? Complications linked to diabetes may include: Heart disease. This is often caused by an extra buildup of plaque on the inner wall of a blood vessel (atherosclerosis). The plaque buildup limits blood

Diabetic Kidney Disease (Diabetic Nephropathy) What is diabetic kidney disease? Diabetic kidney disease is kidney disease that is due to diabetes. It is also called diabetic nephropathy. Nephropathy means your kidneys aren't working normally. Type 1 and type 2 diabetes are the

Appendicitis What is appendicitis? Appendicitis is a medical emergency. It happens when your appendix becomes sore, swollen, and diseased. The appendix is a thin tube that is joined to the large intestine. It sits in the lower right part of your belly (abdomen). The appendix is a

The Digestive System: An Overview What is digestion? Food and drink must be changed into smaller molecules of nutrients to be absorbed into the blood and carried to cells throughout the body. Digestion is the process by which food and liquid are broken down into smaller parts