![]() (See the box below.) How skin gets its color Thus, facultative skin is darker than constitutive skin. Tanning, for instance, changes the composition of melanin in the skin and increases the amount and size of melanin produced by melanocytes. In contrast, facultative skin color results from exposure to UV light and other environmental factors. Typically, it’s seen in areas of little or no sun exposure, such as the underside of the upper arm. facultative skin colorĬonstitutive skin color is the natural, genetically determined color of the epidermis, uninfluenced by ultraviolet (UV) light or hormone exposure. This article explores the concept of skin-color awareness, discusses the role of skin color in nursing assessment, and explains why healthcare providers should practice color awareness, not blindness. Obviously, healthcare professionals will be caring for an increasingly diverse population of many ethnic backgrounds and skin colors. By 2050, people of Hispanic, African, Asian, and Caribbean ancestry likely will represent more than half the total U.S. Yet the Hispanic and Asian populations of the United States are expected to triple over the next half-century. ![]() Most skin-care guidelines apply mainly to patients with light skin. Identifying and evaluating skin color raises questions about stereotyping and the social benefits of being “color-blind.” Long a source of discrimination, skin color is a socially sensitive issue. understanding skin-color changes is crucial for detecting and staging pressure ulcers.īut the exact nature of such color changes as pallor, cyanosis, and redness varies with the patient’s natural skin color-and this can pose a challenge in providing clinically competent and culturally sensitive care.the degree and extent of skin redness is important in burn care.Skin color can reflect a patient’s overall health and is an important part of assessing skin breakdown and wound healing. But even when you apply contrast medium, the injury is hard to detect because of the surrounding skin color. Knowing his natural skin tone is dark, you’re unsure how to assess for central cyanosis.Īn adolescent patient has a serious soft-tissue injury of the leg, but you can’t see bruising because her skin is darkly tanned.Īfter a sexual assault, a dark-skinned patient arrives at the emergency department with a suspected abrasion of the labia minor. Your 75-year-old patient is short of breath.
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