Derm Conditions · Disease learning with a clinical spine
Connect morphology, distribution, history, differentials, confirmation, and treatment concepts—without memorizing disconnected lists.
For: medical students, rotators, interns, and residents. Derm Foundations is recommended; each card shows the expected level and time.
Choose your depth
Every path follows: Browse → Recognize → Describe → Differentiate → Reason → Confirm → Treat → Practice.
Search, filter, and read a Clinical Snapshot.
Core · 20 minutesBuild the clinical pictureMorphology, history, differential, confirmation, and treatment reasoning.
Deep Dive · 35 minutesIntegrate nuancePopulation context, pathology, therapeutics, and less-classic presentations.
Condition discovery
A small, complete launch library—built to scale without placeholders.
8 complete learning cards
Inflammatory · Rotation · 12 min
Chronic immune-mediated disease with well-demarcated papules and plaques, often with scale.
Inflammatory · Foundation · 10 min
Pruritic eczematous disease whose morphology and distribution vary with age and chronicity.
Infectious · Rotation · 10 min
Superficial fungal infection classified by anatomic site and supported by morphology and testing.
Follicular · Foundation · 10 min
Follicular disorder with comedones and variable inflammatory papules, pustules, or nodules.
Inflammatory · Foundation · 8 min
Transient edematous wheals, often pruritic, with or without angioedema.
Pigment · Rotation · 10 min
Acquired depigmentation with well-demarcated macules or patches in characteristic patterns.
Hair · Rotation · 10 min
Immune-mediated nonscarring hair loss that commonly presents in discrete patches.
Oncology · Rotation · 12 min
A structured recognition pathway for lesions that warrant focused evaluation—not image-only diagnosis.
No complete launch card matches that search. Try a morphology, symptom, site, or broader filter.
Complete condition pathway
A model showing how every future condition page should work.
What it looks like
Use the actual observed morphology, color, surface, configuration, and distribution. In darker skin, inflammation may appear violaceous, gray-brown, or dark brown rather than bright red; pigmentary change may persist after activity improves.
Say it like this: “Multiple, symmetric, sharply demarcated plaques with overlying scale are present on the extensor elbows and knees, with additional scalp and nail findings.”
Why this matters
Psoriasis can affect skin, scalp, nails, folds, and joints and may carry substantial psychosocial burden. A focused learner assessment connects the visible pattern to associated sites and symptoms.
What else to examine: scalp, nails, intergluteal cleft and other folds when appropriate, plus additional involved or spared sites.
Focused History Builder
Timeline and evolution help distinguish a chronic relapsing process from acute mimics.
Associated musculoskeletal symptoms matter and should be discussed with the supervising clinician.
Findings at additional sites may support or redirect the working differential.
Potential triggers and treatment exposures may change morphology and interpretation.
Exam Builder
Commonly confused
Both may produce scaly plaques, sometimes with an annular impression.
Scale location, advancing border, distribution, associated scalp/nail findings, exposures, and appropriate testing.
Diagnosing either from circular shape or scale alone.
Psoriasis fits better when morphology, symmetric distribution, and associated sites align. A dermatophyte infection remains important when an advancing scaly edge, exposure, site, or test supports it. Do not let one clue overrule contradictory context.
What changes your mind?
Initial pattern: one annular scaly plaque on the trunk.
New information: bedside microscopy from the active edge demonstrates fungal elements.
Revision: that result supports a dermatophyte infection over psoriasis. A learner should present the changed evidence and discuss management with the supervising clinician.
Psoriasis is more than a “scaly rash”; pattern, sites, associated findings, and impact matter.
Present morphology and distribution before the diagnostic impression.
Examine relevant additional sites, ask about joints and impact, and discuss confirmation and treatment concepts with your supervisor.
Many presentations are diagnosed clinically, but testing or biopsy may be appropriate when morphology is atypical, the differential remains consequential, or response is unexpected.
Management depends on site, extent, severity, symptoms, comorbidities, prior response, patient goals, and safety considerations. Learn the framework—what, why, when, risk, monitoring, and comparison—rather than a detached drug list. Current systemic and targeted treatment decisions require guideline, labeling, population, and monitoring review.
Age, pregnancy or lactation, immune status, comorbidities, organ function, access, and phenotype can change evaluation and management. Do not generalize one population’s evidence to every learner scenario.
Scalable condition-page standard
Launch only when the condition has a useful Clinical Snapshot, morphology-first recognition, a focused differential, history and exam guidance, source-supported diagnostic and treatment concepts, communication practice, retrieval, next actions, and references.
What the patient may say: “This rash keeps coming back and itches.” Translate that into duration, recurrence, persistence of individual lesions, triggers, treatment exposures, symptoms, morphology, and distribution.
Common mistakes
Correct by learning phenotype, site, stage, age, and skin-tone variation.
Prioritize the most likely, important alternative, and dangerous mimic only when relevant.
Use the condition-specific Exam Builder rather than examining by habit alone.
Connect choice to severity, site, patient context, safety, monitoring, and evidence.
When to escalate
Use calm, pattern-specific escalation. A systemically unwell patient, rapidly progressive or painful eruption, extensive blistering or detachment, mucosal involvement, concerning non-blanching lesions, or a suspicious changing lesion warrants prompt discussion through the clinical team.
Retrieval practice
30-second recap
If your attending asks
Describe objective morphology, surface, configuration, and involved and spared sites.
Give the leading diagnosis, strongest alternative, and discriminating feature. Add a dangerous mimic only when the presentation warrants it.
Name condition-specific sites and why each might support or redirect the differential.
State whether the pattern is usually clinical and what test, sampling, dermoscopy, biopsy, or follow-up might resolve meaningful uncertainty.
Next best actions
Also connects to future Treatments, Procedures, and Clinical Cases.