The magazine has two yearly recognition lists. Top Doctors honorees are determined by Consumers鈥� CHECKBOOK, a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit organization. The Premier Doctors List is a peer reviewed study done by an independent research company.

In addition to caring for patients at 麻豆原创 Health鈥檚 two locations 鈥� in East Orlando and Lake Nona 鈥� the College of Medicine faculty honorees also educate medical students, residents and fellows. To request an appointment at 麻豆原创 Health or to learn more about the practice, please visit .

Here are this year鈥檚 honorees and their specialty:

Top Doctors List Recognition

Mariana Dangiolo, family medicine, geriatrics

Premier Doctors List Recognition

Abdo Asmar, nephrology

Vladimir Neychev, endocrine and general surgery

Naveed Sami, dermatology

Top & Premier Doctors List Recognition

Shazia Beg, rheumatology

Neha Bhanusali, rheumatology

Joyce Paulson, internal medicine

Also honored was Diane Davey, who retired from the College of Medicine and continues to care for patients as a pathologist at the Orlando VA Medical Center.

Florida 鈥� a state that gets 230-255 days of beautiful sunshine annually 鈥� is home for 麻豆原创. Most Knights spend their days basking in the sun outdoors, which board-certified dermatologist and 麻豆原创 Professor of Medicine, Naveed Sami, says should be done safely in increments.

Keep reading to discover the best ways to stay sun-safe (spoiler alert: these useful tips still apply year-round, not just summer alone).

Sunlight and Our Skin

We are all exposed to the sun and ultraviolet (UV) rays anytime we venture outside. Despite being unable to see them, the sun gives off UV radiation that can provide our bodies with nutrients and instantly boost our mood but can still damage our skin鈥檚 layers.

鈥淚t鈥檚 not only the intensity of the sun鈥檚 rays, but also lifetime accumulation of sun exposure [that is damaging],鈥� Sami says.

Two types of UV rays contribute to skin damage: UVA (ultraviolet A) and UVB (ultraviolet B). UVA has a longer wavelength which penetrates the skin deeper and is associated with skin aging. UVB has a shorter wavelength which hits the skin surface and is associated with reddening and burning of the skin (aka the dreadful sunburn).

So, should we still catch some rays? The short answer: yes. A small amount of UV rays creates vitamin D, which absorbs calcium for our bodies to build and maintain healthy bones. But regardless, UV rays can cause damage to skin cells within the first few minutes of hitting our skin.

鈥淭here is [also] DNA damage that is taking place,鈥� Sami says. 鈥淥ur immune system is constantly working to repair itself, but when that damage accumulates, then certain mutations set in that can lead to skin cancer.鈥�

What Damage Can be Done?

The bottom line: everyone is at risk of the effects of sun exposure. Your risk increases based on how long you鈥檙e exposed and how deep the UV rays penetrate your skin. Sami says prolonged exposure can lead to:

• Early aging: UVA accelerates the aging process. Wrinkled or tight skin, and dark spots are some of the most common signs.
• Eye injuries: UV rays can injure the tissue in our eyes causing cataracts, which is clouding of the normally clear lens of the eye.
• Skin cancer: Oftentimes, skin cancer presents itself as a brown, black or red spot that is changing or new. The three most common visible skin cancers are basal cell, squamous cell carcinoma and Melanoma. But other times, skin cancer may not even be visible, rather something we feel underneath the skin like a bump or lump. If left untreated, skin cancer can spread to other areas in your body.
• Sunburn: An intense amount of UVB becomes toxic to the skin and commonly appears as a first-degree burn that turns the skin pink or red. Prolonged sun exposure can cause blistering and a second-degree burn.

Armor Up, Knights

It starts with you. Get to know your body and how it reacts to sunlight. After all, our skin is our body鈥檚 largest organ, and it does a great job of caring for us. We should do our part to protect it.

Follow these guidelines to ensure total sun protection:

• Cover up: Generally, clothing fabric doesn鈥檛 have a very high Ultraviolet Protection Factor (UPF), which indicates how much UV radiation a fabric allows to reach your skin. Wearing UPF clothing (UPF 50) can give you an added layer of protection.

You should also keep a pair of sunglasses handy and wear them outdoors to protect your delicate eyes.

• Get checked: Be proactive about your skin health by doing self-exams at least once a month. Look for any changing moles, new growth, or spots on your skin.

鈥淚 usually tell patients to look for five changes: size, color, shape, pain or bleeding.鈥� 鈥� Naveed Sami, dermatologist and 麻豆原创 professor of medicine

If you have any questions or concerns, ask your primary care physician. If your physician sees a spot, they will likely refer you to a dermatologist, or you can ask to be referred to one.

• Plan your exposure: The ultraviolet (UV) index provides a forecast of the strength of the sun鈥檚 UV rays in your region. As the late morning and afternoon approaches, the UV index is typically higher, which is when the sun鈥檚 rays are the strongest. Try to avoid direct sun between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., and seek shade underneath a shelter, umbrella or tree.

And in case you were wondering 鈥� your skin is still getting damaged if it鈥檚 a cloudy or cool day. When the weather is overcast, UVB intensity is low, but the UVA is still highly present. UVB is less likely to cause immediate sunburn, but UVA will cause sun damage. Don鈥檛 get caught lacking 鈥� stay protected.

• Use sunscreen: 鈥淏y using sunscreen, we can actually reduce the amount of skin aging by nearly 25% over our lifetime,鈥� Sami says. So, be sure to apply the equivalent of a shot glass (two tablespoons) of sunscreen to the exposed areas of your face and body. Do so at least 20 to 30 minutes before going outside and reapply every 60 to 90 minutes.

鈥淪unscreen that鈥檚 broad spectrum, water-resistant, SPF 30 to 50 with zinc is my usual recommendation to patients,鈥� Sami says.

Broad spectrum sunscreen protects your skin from harmful UVA and UVB rays. Sun protection factor, or SPF, measures how long it will take for UVB light to hit our skin and cause redness. 鈥淔or example, if we use SPF 15 as opposed to not using it, then it鈥檚 going to take 15 times longer for our skin to burn,鈥� Sami says. 鈥淚f you use the higher SPF strength, you are giving yourself a better advantage in terms of protecting yourself against cumulative [UV] radiation damage.鈥�

And unlike chemical sunscreens which absorb into the skin, zinc oxide sunscreen sits on the skin鈥檚 surface and deflects the sun鈥檚 rays 鈥� providing instant protection against sun damage.

Keep these other factors in mind:

1. Some medicines can make your skin more sensitive to the sun and its UV rays. When your skin is more sensitive, there鈥檚 more risk of burning and more absorption of the sun鈥檚 rays. Check with your doctor for side effects of photosensitivity.
2. Ten percent to 15% of skin cancer can occur in non-sun exposed areas. So, if you see a mole or any lesions changing, or if a persistent spot looks suspicious and is not healing, don’t ignore it 鈥� go get it checked.

Sun safety is always in season 鈥� from summer beach days to tailgating in the fall. Remember to protect your skin, stay hydrated and apply your sunscreen, Knights.

The publication contains two lists 鈥� Top Doctors, compiled by Consumers鈥� CHECKBOOK, a nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C., and Premier Doctors, a peer-review study conducted exclusively for the magazine by an independent research company.

Seven awardees are faculty physicians at聽, the College of Medicine鈥檚 clinical practice, with locations in East Orlando and Lake Nona. Here are the 麻豆原创 Health honorees:

Top & Premier Doctors List Recognition

, rheumatology

, rheumatology

, internal medicine

Top Doctors List Recognition

, family medicine and geriatrics

Premier Doctors List Recognition

, nephrology

, general and endocrine surgery

, dermatology

鲍颁贵鈥檚 Diane Davey also received Top Doctors recognition. A pathologist who cares for patients at the Orlando VA Medical Center, Davey is a frequent聽Orlando Magazine聽honoree and also serves as the College of Medicine鈥檚 associate dean for graduate medical education.

Veronica Sikka was named to the Premier Doctor list. She is a College of Medicine faculty member who cares for patients at the Orlando VA鈥檚 Emergency Department.

Douglas Meuser, a sports medicine specialist at 麻豆原创 Student Health Services, also received Top Doctors recognition.

鈥淭he university is honored by these recognitions,鈥� says Deborah German, vice president for Health Affairs and Dean of the 麻豆原创 College of Medicine. 鈥淥ur physicians went into medicine to provide extraordinary care聽to our patients and the community through their own practice and by teaching the next generation of doctors.鈥�

This year鈥檚 medical school physician awardees and their respective honors are:

• , nephrology, Premier
• , rheumatology, Top and Premier
• , rheumatology, Top and Premier
• Diane Davey, pathology, Top
• , general surgery, Premier
• , internal medicine, Top and Premier
• , dermatology, Premier
• , dermatology, Premier

Douglas Meuser, a sports medicine specialist at , was also honored as a Top Doc.

Awardees are nominated by their peers. The Top Doctors list is compiled by Consumers鈥� CHECKBOOK, a non-profit organization based in Washington, D.C. The Premier Doctors list is a peer review study, conducted exclusively for Orlando Magazine by an independent research company.

鈥淲e are grateful to the community for this honor,鈥� says Deborah German, 麻豆原创 vice president for Health Affairs and dean of the College of Medicine. 鈥淧roviding extraordinary patient care to the community while we train the next generation of healthcare leaders and create scientific discoveries to improve health is the core of our mission.鈥�

The study, conducted by researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Drexel University College of Medicine, ranked medical schools nationally by the number of students 鈥� proportional to class size 鈥� who matched into dermatology residencies across the U.S. 麻豆原创 ranked 13th nationally, tied with Stanford University. The top three rankings were Baylor College of Medicine, Harvard University and University of Michigan respectively.

Dermatology is one of the most competitive specialties for residency applicants. In 2021, 734 applicants applied for 477 positions available nationally.

From 2017-2020, the years earmarked for the study, 17 麻豆原创 medical students matched into residency programs at hospitals including UC Irvine Medical Center, Mayo Clinic and Boston University Medical Center.

The study showed that schools with their own dermatology residency programs had higher match rates. 聽The College of Medicine does not yet have a dermatology residency, and Jeff Greenwald, chair of dermatology education, says 鲍颁贵鈥檚 ranking is a testament to the hard work and dedication of students and faculty.

鈥淒ermatology residency programs are probably the most competitive to match out of any subspecialty,鈥� he says. 鈥淪o for students at a school of our size, not having a residency program, not having a clinical program the way a lot of medical schools do, it鈥檚 pretty incredible that that number of students has successfully matched.鈥�

The study also cited mentorship as a key contributing factor to match success. Greenwald praised the work of Naveed Sami and David Weinstein, faculty physicians at 麻豆原创 Health, the College of Medicine clinical practice, who lead dermatology electives for students.

鈥淒r. Sami and Dr. Weinstein have consistently served not only as great role models for the students,鈥� Greenwald says, 鈥淭hey have tremendously helped our students achieve dermatology publications which is a significant part of students鈥� success in the highly competitive dermatology match.鈥�

In addition to research opportunities, students gain clinical experience working alongside the faculty dermatologists in their clinical practice.

鈥淭he success of medical students goes back to the old saying 鈥業t takes a village to raise a child,鈥� 鈥� says. Sami, who specializes in autoimmune and autoinflammatory skin diseases. 鈥淭his is no different for medical students as they journey through medical school and beyond. 聽The dermatology faculty are hopeful the class of 2022 and beyond will continue to replicate the successful results.鈥�

The magazine featured two lists this year 鈥� a 鈥淭op Doctors List鈥� compiled by Consumers鈥� CHECKBOOK, a non-profit organization based in Washington, DC,聽and a 鈥淧remier Doctors List鈥� a peer-review study, conducted exclusively for聽Orlando Magazine聽by an independent research company.

鈥淲e are thrilled and honored to have so many of our outstanding physicians recognized this year for the extraordinary, patient-centered care they provide to people across our community,鈥� said Dr. Deborah German, 鲍颁贵鈥檚 vice president for health affairs and founding dean of the 麻豆原创 College of Medicine.

Here are the 麻豆原创 doctors named as Orlando Magazine鈥檚 top physicians:

• 聽鈥� Nephrology
• 聽鈥� Rheumatology
• 聽鈥� Rheumatology
• 聽鈥� Family Medicine/Geriatrics
• Diane Davey 鈥� Pathology (practices at Orlando VA Medical Center)
• 聽鈥� Family Medicine
• Marcia Katz聽鈥� Pulmonology
• Douglas Meuser 鈥� Sports Medicine (practices at 麻豆原创 Student Health Services)
• Vladimir Neychev聽鈥� General Surgery
• 聽鈥� Internal Medicine
• 聽鈥� Dermatology
• Judith Simms-Cendan 鈥� OB/GYN (practices at Orlando Health鈥檚 Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children)
• 聽鈥� Psychiatry
• David Weinstein聽鈥� Dermatology