PETE GARCIA M.D.

GENERAL VASCULAR
&
MINIMALLY INVASIVE SURGERY

The skin is the largest organ of the body, with a total area of about 20 square feet. The skin protects us from microbes and the elements, helps regulate body temperature, and permits the sensations of touch, heat, and cold.

EPIDERMIS (THE OUTERMOST LAYER of SKIN)
• Forms a protective waterproof barrier
• Prevents pathogens from entering
• Creates our skin tone

DERMIS (BENEATH THE EPIDERMIS)
• Contains hair follicles, sweat glands, apocrine glands, sebaceous glands, nerve endings, lymphatic and blood vessels
• Connective tissue provides strength and elasticity

Hypodermis (DEEPER SUBCUTANEOUS TISSUE)
• Contains 50% of body fat
• Attaches skin to bone and muscle

Lumps in the skin and soft tissues of the body are extremely common and may be simple cysts, benign skin lesions or Lipomas (fatty tumors) but could also be more serious, such as melanomas (skin cancers) or sarcomas (cancerous tumors of connective tissue).

Board Certified & Practicing Medicine for Over 20 Years
PG2