Omar Noor, MD: Challenging Cases in Skin of Color

In this HCPLive interview, Omar Noor, MD, FAAD, spoke on some of the major takeaways from his presentation ‘Challenging Cases in Skin of Color,’ given at the Society of Dermatology Physician Assistants (SDPA) 2023 Annual Summer Dermatology Conference.

Noor is known for his work as a dermatologist, as well as being owner and medical director of Rao Dermatology in New York City. He has published many articles in the field and is an expert in acne, skin cancer treatment, psoriasis, and atopic dermatitis.

In the interview, Noor was asked about his presentation and, specifically, about some of the most common skin conditions that disproportionately affect patients with skin of color.

“Skin of color patients are unique, and they sometimes have skin conditions that may affect them at a higher rate,” Noor explained. “You know, we see keloid formation being one of the most highly prevalent conditions in our skin of color patients. And we need to be aware that some procedures that we do for our skin color patients may result in keloid formation.”

Noor further elaborated on his conference lecture, explaining more about the unique needs of this population.

“The other areas that we really need to pay attention to are hyperpigmentation, and hypopigmentation, including melasma,” he stated. “Melasma is another condition of hyperpigmentation that we need to recognize is seen at a higher rate in our skin of color patients. And therefore, we need to be able to make sure that we communicate appropriate sun avoidance and appropriate treatment for those patients.”

Noor was later asked about tailoring treatment plans to the unique needs of this patient population.

“So we have been blessed in dermatology to have a lot of new innovations, especially within the past couple of years in the specific disease state of atopic dermatitis,” he said. “I mean, there has been an explosion of options. It started with really our kind of core treatment options being deployed your map and deploy your map came to the market roughly 6 years ago, and has been the cornerstone of our systemic treatment options for atopic patients. I don't think anyone will dispute that.”

He further described some of the treatment plans described in his conference lecture.

“But the nice thing about dupilumab is that the FDA-approved indication for the age for dupilumab has gone down to 6 months of age,” Noor explained. “And now most recently, it's been approved for prurigo nodularis, which is a condition that we do see at a higher rate and skin of color patients, and really is a good reflection on how the medication is working from an itch perspective on IL4 and IL13. And other medication for atopic dermatitis that has come to the market is topical ruxolitinib, topical ruxolitinib really became a game changer for our atopic patients, because it provided us with a steroid free option for our patients where you can use it from head to toe without having to worry about atrophy.”

To learn more about his talk, view Noor’s full interview above.

The quotes contained in this interview description were edited for clarity.