Course Description
Skin pigmentation is a major protective factor of human skin health. It is the most prominent phenotypic characteristic of humans. Its disorders can manifest as a wide spectrum of hyperpigmentation, hypopigmentation and depigmentation, including various benign and malignant skin diseases, which are common skin conditions diagnosed and treated by dermatologists. Protection against the harmful characteristic of ultraviolet radiation (UVR), which is a common skin ageing-inducing and carcinogenic factor, without skin pigmentation is impossible. In recent years, incredible progress has been made in understanding the regulation of human skin pigmentation and photo-ageing, the influence of different visible light spectrums, and the importance of UVR protection for pigmentary processes in the skin.

Pharmacological agents and cosmeceuticals, options of aesthetic medicine and LASER procedures to control skin pigment has been a goal in both the medical and cosmetic fields and has significant implications for skin cancer prevention, photoaging, and aesthetics. On the other hand, skin in colour and its diseases, which are phenotypically different than the known pictures in fair skin, currently, gains a great interest and the resulting knowledge invites dermatologists to become familiar with it. That is why it is necessary to delve into various aspects of human skin pigmentation, including its biochemical and hormonal control, response to UV, manifestations of skin pigmentation abnormalities, diseases and ageing, diagnostic techniques as well as pharmacological and interventional manipulations in both fair skin and skin of colour, in order to help patients as effectively as possible in daily dermatological practice

Learning Objectives
1. Basic understanding of melanocyte biology.
2. Basic and modern understanding of the pigmentation processes in human skin.
3. Clinical comprehension of dermatological pigmentary conditions, abnormalities and diseases.
4. Molecular aspects of pigmentary conditions, abnormalities and diseases.
5. Current pharmacological and interventional manipulations for the main pigmentary skin conditions, abnormalities and diseases.

Faculty
Chairs: Rūta Gancevičienė, Christos C. Zouboulis
Speakers: Carmen Salavastru, Mauro Picardo, Shyam Verma
Tutors: Tadas Raudonis, Agnė Sausdravė, Jorinta Jokubaitė