Meet the Doctor Cheryl M. Burgess
She is known as an authority on non-invasive cosmetic procedures and advanced dermatological technology. She has developed and patented (United States Patent Numbers 7,637,900 and 8,038,665) unique technique of aesthetic enhancement using dermal fillers and neuromodulators. She is an invited lecturer for the American Society of Plastic Surgeons, the American Society of Aesthetic Physicians, the American Society of Dermatologic Surgery, and the American Academy of Dermatology. A highly sought-after speaker, she has been invited to lecture for these and many other medical organizations. She was inducted into the prestigious American Dermatological Association.
World-class dermatology services right here in Washington DC
Welcome to the Center for Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery. We are proud to provide world-class skin care to all residents in Washington DC and the surrounding communities, as well as those who choose to travel from distant locations. Our board-certified dermatologist provides medical and cosmetic treatments to individuals of all ethnicities and skin types.
As one of the leading dermatologists nationally and internationally, Dr. Burgess has elevated standards of excellence, which she will not compromise. She’s the founder, president, and medical director of the Center for Dermatology and Dermatologic Surgery, The Professional Aesthetic Image Center.
Our dermatologist Dr. Cheryl Burgess is dedicated to providing an unparalleled standard of personalized care to our patients to help them improve their quality of life. Call (202) 955 – 5757. We have one convenient phone number for questions and appointments for all locations.
Dr. Cheryl Burgess was a clinical investigator in the research trials for the company Kythera that developed the FDA cleared product Kybella, an injectable treatment used for adults who are dealing with excess fat in the submental area.
As co-founder of Black Opal, Dr. Burgess is very pleased that two of their products have received recent acclaim by Paula’s Choice. Black Opal provides a line of cosmetics and skin care formulations designed with ethnic skin in mind. Paula’s Choice, an independent marketing research firm with strict guidelines for purity and effectiveness claims, named Black Opal’s Even True Tri-Complex Tonecorrect Fade Gel and Even True Tonecorrect Fade Crème among the "best skin lightening products." Black Opal was the only ethnic brand listed.
Published work
As a researcher and author, Dr. Burgess has written articles that have been published in numerous peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, the Journal of Drugs in Dermatology, Cutis, Dermatologic Surgery, Cosmetic Dermatology, and Aesthetic Plastic Surgery. Dr. Burgess is also the author and senior editor of Cosmetic Dermatology (published by Springer-Verlag). She has contributed to numerous textbooks, including Sauer’s Manual of Skin Diseases. She authored the chapters "Poly-L-lactic Acid" in Facial Rejuvenation with Fillers, "Cosmetic Products" in Dermatology for Skin of Color, and "Special Considerations in African-American Skin" in Cosmetic Dermatology in Skin of Color.
Five star review from Facebook
Hands down the best place in The DMV to get your Dermatological needs taken care of. Dr. Burgess is the best!
Clinical Research Investigator
Kythera-Kybella® for treatment of submental fat
Revance-Sakura® botulinum toxin-A
Merz-Belotero Balance® filler
Allergan-Voluma® filler
Aclaris-Eskata® for topical destruction of seborrheic keratosis
Aclaris-JAK Inhibitor for treatment of alopecia areata
Education and experience
Dr. Burgess began her educational journey at the prestigious Howard University College of Medicine in Washington, DC. After earning her doctorate of medicine degree she went on to complete an internal medicine internship followed by a dermatology residency with Howard University Hospital. She has been honored with the revered position of Assistant Clinical Professor at the Georgetown, University Department of Dermatology, Medical Center and George Washington University Hospital, in Washington, DC. Dr. Burgess also founded the Center for Dermatology Physicians Assistant Fellowship Program, (a program accredited by the Association of Post Graduate PA Programs), and she currently serves as medical director.Dr. Cheryl Burgess was a clinical investigator in the research trials for the company Kythera that developed the FDA cleared product Kybella, an injectable treatment used for adults who are dealing with excess fat in the submental area.
Few videos of Doctor Cheryl M. Burgess featured in
Reduce Signs of Aging With Hand Rejuvenation
Presenter: Well, nothing gives away your age like your hands. You’ve been hearing that for ages, but help could be on the way. An FDA advisory committee is recommending an injectable filler be approved for use on your hands and Dr. Cheryl Burgess is here with more on that filler and how it can be used. I guess it’s really ads that used to have women, because they washed dishes, but their hands looked young. Look at mine, I can certainly see
Dr. Cheryl Burgess: We do so much about our faces, and we neglect the neck and the hands and that’s really the giveaway, I think, for a lot of women. So, the main thing is you can start now, protecting your hands with sunscreen. You know, we always put sunscreen on other areas, but you never kind of put it on the backs of your hands while you are using your hands to put it on.
Presenter: So, that’s one thing you can do to prevent …
CB: So, that’s one thing for prevention, yeah.
Presenter: What about this filler?
CB: The filler is really a product that’s used on the face. It just got a new FDA approval, and so for the most part, we’ve used this since 2004 and with an older hand, if you see more veininess and you see more prominence of the bones. This is a Before photo of a patient with a lot of veininess of her hands and then the After photo after injecting the, it smoothes the surface out. So you see less prominent blood vessels and less kind of bony structures of the hand.
Presenter: Right, like we see here. So how does it work? I mean, do you have to go through the …
CB: So actually, it’s a pretty, you know, simple procedure to do in the office and there’s really no downtime with it. The area’s first numbed, we put a topical numbing on. And we just kind of tent the skin like this and we out the preparation right under the layer of the skin. And then it’s massaged. We have people sit on their hands and normally, it gives a little bit of volume to the backs of the hands.
Presenter: How long would it last?
CB: It could last anywhere from a year to 18 months, but with time you tend to develop collagen because this is a product that not only fills but stimulates your own collagen.
Presenter: Oh, so it’s not just to look better for a few days or for a year
CB: It continues to improve with time, correct.
Presenter: Oh, that’s great.
CB: So, that’s one thing we have new for hands
Laser Surgery Is Popular, But Is It Safe?
Presenter: Laser and light-based treatments can do everything from reduce wrinkles to remove hair. Dr. Cheryl Burgess joins us with more on who is a candidate for these treatments and what to watch out for. Good morning!
Cheryl Burgess, MD: Good morning!
Presenter: Well, they are everywhere, lasers these days, and people, I mean, I know lots of women going and I guess men too. Tell us, what are they used for mostly?
CB: Well, we use them for medical and cosmetic reasons. And for the most part, you’ll see is a lot of the cosmetic and medical ones and medical offices, and only kind of esthetic ones and spas or medi-spas, places like that. So you have to really be aware of who’s operating what. But these are some common uses that we use laser and light sources for. So, we remove warts and growths from the face, some birthmarks we improve upon, and definitely we can kind of erase sunspots, but hair removal is probably one of the biggest areas where we use lasers and we can also use it for resurfacing and lines and wrinkles on the skin.
Presenter: And removing tattoos too.
CB: And tattoos. It’s getting big because that, sometimes it’s a fad. And then, you know, you may have the barbed wire going around your arm and now that’s not in, so they want to remove that. And maybe get another tattoo?
CB: Yes, they do work. There’re different ones for different pigments or different colors that you happen to have tattoos.
Presenter: Now looking at that list of things you are using it for, are those done in both the spas and doctors’ offices?
CB: Now that’s something the people need to be aware of. Medical conditions such as the first couple on that list need to be performed by a physician because you need adequate training, you need to make sure that you are treating this medical condition with a medical laser. And that’s the difference as far as like laser hair removal or something like that that an esthetician can do. But one needs to know that there are certain rules and regulations and guidelines and laws in certain states in where you need a nurse or a physician’s assistant or the physician actually performing even some of the medi-spas.
Presenter: Things like birthmarks, and …
CB: Well, no, I’m just talking about more of the medi-spa type of procedures that you think “Oh, I’m going in for laser hair removal. Why do I need a physician to do it?” Well, there are certain states that require no one less than a physician. So that needs to be checked out. I know the State of Maryland has those types of laws where the District of Columbia and Virginia do not.
Presenter: Okay, let’s just talk about some of the cosmetic procedures that people are having on. Now they go to get wrinkles removed from around here, is that something that anyone can do?
CB: Well, it depends on your skin type, we need to know because everybody’s kind of racially mixed now. Just because your skin looks white doesn’t mean you may react like someone who has white skin. You may have undertones; we always talk about Carrie Underwood who’s now a whole Indian. And she could hyper-pigment. So we always have to look at, you know, your medical history, we need to look at your skin type. There are lasers that are used for skin of color. So don’t get me wrong that people with more richly pigmented skin cannot use lasers, because they can. But not everyone has these types of lasers and not everyone is qualified to perform those procedures.
Presenter: Have … Because I had heard that you have to be very careful if you have olive or dark skin with lasers that they can actually make...
CB: They can hyper-pigment the skin. However, the frequencies and the settings and the parameters are somewhat different. So, does it mean that they can’t utilize these laser sources? It’s just that different settings are used and when you get this information from the company, they are solely just giving you settings for white skin versus brown skin or black skin.
Presenter: Any risks, quickly, any risks?
CB: Yes, there’s a risk of burning; lots of burns that we see, particularly dermatologists in our office that we have to treat is if you got burned by any other type of device or instrument.
Presenter: So, you’ve really got to be careful.
CB: Yes
Presenter: Be sure you know what you are doing.
CB: Yes
Presenter: The person who’s doing it to you knows what they are doing
CB: Definitely.
Presenter: Thanks so much.
CB: You are welcome.
Celebrity Makeup Artist Reveals Makeup Secrets
November 2017: Top Doctors
Dr. Cheryl Burgess has been featured as a Top Doctor in the November 2017 issue of Washingtonian magazine.
Professional Affiliations and Recognitions
Doctor Cheryl M. Burgess's Memory Lane
