Moles are harmless skin growths that may be flat or protruding. They vary in color from pink flesh tones to dark brown or black. Everyone has moles. Some of us have a lot of them, others have only a few. Rarely, a mole can become cancerous. If you have a mole which is changing or looks different than your other moles, you should have it checked immediately by your plastic surgeon.
II. Congenital Pigmented Nevus
A congenital pigmented nevus is a type of pigmented birthmark that appears at birth or during the first year of life and occurs in 1% to 2% of the population. These birthmarks are frequently found on the trunk or extremities, but they can appear anywhere. They do not go away although some nevi may get lighter in color over the first few years of life. There is an increased risk of developing melanoma - an aggressive form of skin cancer.
The number of skin moles someone gets depends a lot on our genes. skin moles sometimes appear in "crops," especially during the early teens.skin moles- Excision of Moles No one knows why we get skin moles. Genetics and sun exposure are probably very important
Pregnancy can cause skin moles to get bigger, but if one is getting bigger faster then the others, have it checked by a plastic surgeon
IV. Treatment of a mole - Laser or Surgery:
Most moles are usually harmless and safe to ignore.
Mole removal for cosmetic reasons is a simple procedure usually covered by insurance. After numbing the skin, Mole removal is completed with scissors or a scalpel. The wound heals to leave a flat scar.
Complete
destruction of a mole requires removing the full thickness of skin. The resulting scar is usually less noticeable than the mole was. Complete destruction of a mole requires removing the full thickness of skin. The resulting scar
is usually less noticeable than the mole was.
Moles sometimes grow annoying coarse hair, and it may be safely removed by shaving or plucking.Permanent removal of the hair, which has roots deep within the skin,
requires laser hair removal or complete surgical excision of the mole.
Any mole that bleeds, itches, markedly changes color, has an unusual appearance, or changes in any way should be checked by your plastic surgeon immediately!
Chicago Surgical Mole Removal Before & After Pictures
36 year old before, 6 weeks after 3 month s after excision of her left nasal mole. Notice the maintenance of her nasal shape. The scar (even though it is still active) is certainly less noticeable than her mole. Even though we do a lot of laser mole removals, this mole required surgical removal.
22-year-old male with left arm congenital pigmented nevus (CPN) that was to undergo serial excisions. Patient had the 1st stage serial excision (about 70% removal) and then was lost to follow up as he moved back to his home country. This took 15 minutes in the office under local anesthesia and the 2nd procedure would have removed the rest of the CPN. The patient would've been left with a scar the length of his birthmark but obviously a lot skinnier. The other option is to get an outpatient surgery with a tissue expander, expansion over the course of a few months, and then a 2nd outpatient surgical procedure to remove the birthmark all in one surgery. The second option obviously is more costly as it requires 2 outpatient surgical procedures vs 2 simpler procedures done in the office to yield the same result. There's also a cosmetic deformity or embarrassment as the tissue expander is expanded and this is often difficult for patients to hide under their shirts or explain.
When I first published The 7 Critical Questions to Ask Before Letting Any Surgeon Touch You, I had no idea that it would be so popularly received. Since its publication, this brief guide has helped thousands like you to more safely navigate the world of cosmetic surgery. The 7 Questions have been updated and a bonus section, Applying the 7 Questions, has just been added. Be my guest to read, learn and share.
