Benign lumps and bumps
Benign skin lesions (growths) are often referred to as “lumps and bumps.” A wide variety of these can be present on the skin, and most are amenable to treatment in expert hands.
Most skin lumps are completely harmless, however some can help identify internal illnesses or genetic conditions, and others can be difficult to distinguish from more serious cancerous growths.
Therefore, it is important to seek expert advice from a dermatologist regarding the nature of your skin lesion, and which is the best treatment, should any be required.
A variety of treatments are available, including laser and surgical treatments. We shall be happy to advise you during your consultation.
Common skin lumps that we are asked to treat include:
- Moles
- Lipoma / Angiolipoma
- Cysts
- Seborrhoeic keratoses
- Skin tags
- Pyogenic granuloma
- Viral warts
- Dermatofibroma
-
others
What does skin surgery involve?
Skin surgery, performed in expert hands, is relatively straightforward. We work in CQC approved state of the art operating theatres, with top quality staff and equipment. Throughout the proceedure, the focus remains firmly on the patient's well being and comfort. Here we provide on overview of some frequently asked questions, but if you need more information, please contact our team by messaging our nurse, or telephone for advice.
Will I need to stay in hospital?
All most all patients are treated as "day-cases," which means that you can leave shortly after your procedure. It's often a good idea to have a friend, family member or a taxi take you home.
Will I have a local or general anaesthetic?
Almost all skin procedures, even large ones, can be done under local anaesthetic. A local anaesthetic is usually given as a simple injection to the area of skin on which we are going to perform the surgery. It works very quickly and tends to last a little over 1 hour. Your dermatologist is highly skilled at local anaesthesia and the nurses are experts in looking after patients who are awake during the procedure.
Occasionally, it may be more practical for you to be asleep during surgery. If so, an anaesthetist can administer an general anaesthetic.
Do you use dissolving stitches?
Sometimes! in our mission to give you the best scar, we use very high quality plastic/cosmetic grade stitches. We favour dissolving stitches on certain body sites, such as the eyelid, mouth and genitals. Elsewhere, we may favour non-dissolving stitches, or even tissue glue, or no stitches at all.
What about the scar?
At Skinetix, our dermatologists take a real pride in our surgical scars. We are interested in minimizing the appearance of your scar and will give you individually tailored care to help with the healing of your wound. There is no such thing as scarless surgery, despite the claims of some practices. We closely follow the scar research literature and apply the best available techniques.
Will I be left with stitch marks?
In our practice, it's rare for a patient to be left with stitch marks. We frequently hide the stitches underneath the skin to avoid this problem, or we remove the stitches early to try to prevent stitch marks.