Dermatologic surgery

Der­ma­to­lo­gic sur­gery is the sur­gi­cal branch of der­ma­to­lo­gy. It covers pro­ce­du­res on the skin, sub­cu­ta­neous tis­sue, hair and nails, from a small bio­psy to the rem­oval of skin tumours fol­lo­wed by wound closure.

Appli­ca­ti­on

Typi­cal uses include remo­ving sus­pi­cious moles, cysts, lipo­mas or non-mela­n­o­ma skin can­cer such as basal cell car­ci­no­ma. The remo­ved tis­sue is exami­ned under the micro­scope. For tumours in deli­ca­te are­as such as the face, Mohs sur­gery ensu­res com­ple­te rem­oval while spa­ring healt­hy skin. Lar­ger defects are clo­sed with sutures, skin flaps or skin grafts.

Good to know

Most pro­ce­du­res are per­for­med as an out­pa­ti­ent under local anaes­the­sia, and pati­ents can usual­ly lea­ve on their own after­wards. Depen­ding on size and loca­ti­on, a few days of rest are advi­sa­ble and stit­ches are remo­ved after one to two weeks. Every incis­i­on lea­ves a scar; pla­cing it along the skin ten­si­on lines keeps it as incon­spi­cuous as possible.

Matching tre­at­ment at Swiss Der­ma Cli­nic: Sur­gi­cal Rem­oval of Cuta­neous Tumours