Mole / Skin Tag Removal
Mole Removal
Moles are skin growths made up of cells that produce color (pigment). A mole can appear anywhere on the skin, alone or in groups. Most people get a few moles during their first 20 years of life. They are usually brown in color but can be blue, black, or flesh colored. Most moles are harmless and don’t cause pain or other symptoms unless you rub them, or they bump against something.
Skin Tag Removal
Skin Tags are small, soft pieces of skin that stick out on a thin stem. They most often appear on the neck, armpits, upper trunk, and body folds. The cause of skin tags is not known. They are harmless.
Most moles and skin tags don’t require treatment. But sometimes people want to remove them for cosmetic reasons or because they cause discomfort when they rub against clothing or get caught in jewelry. We may need to do a biopsy of the mole if it looks different than other moles, which means removing the mole and sending it to a lab to check it for cancer.
Treatment options for Mole and Skin Tag Removal
Cutting it off
Skin tags may be snipped off with a scalpel or surgical scissors. Some moles can be “shaved” off flush with the skin. Other moles may have cells that go underneath the skin, so a deeper cut may be needed to remove the entire mole and prevent it from growing back. This cut may require stitches.
Freezing it with liquid nitrogen
We can swab or spray a small amount of super-cold liquid nitrogen on the mole or skin tag. You might have a small blister where the mole or skin tag was, but it will heal on its own. Multiple sessions might be needed to achieve the desired results.
Burning it off
An electric current passes through a metallic tip that becomes hot and is used to burn off the upper layers of the skin. You may need more than one treatment to remove a mole. Skin tags are removed by burning through the narrow stem that attaches them to the skin. The heat helps prevent bleeding.
