الفهرس 
Seborrheic keratosisOnly 14 pages are availabe for public view
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Abstract
Seborrheic keratosis is one of the most common types of noncancerous (benign) skin growths in older adults. Most people develop at least one seborrheic keratosis at some point in their lives.
Seborrheic keratosis usually appears as a brown, black or pale growth on the face, chest, shoulders and back, the growth has a waxy, scaly appearance, the lesion appears singly, but multiple growth are more common.
Removal of seborrheic keratosis using several methods includes: freezing with liquid nitrogen (cryosurgery), scraping the skin’s surface with curettage, burning with an electrical current (electrocoutary), in addition, seborrheic keratosis can be removed using Er:YAG laser and it thought to be effective and safe method used to selectively destroy the lesion without damaging the surrounding skin.
Cryosurgery makes use of local freezing for controlled destruction or removal of living, but abnormal tissue.
Er:YAG laser has been used in the treatment of seborrheic keratosis and it is thought to be effective and safe method used to selectively destroy lesions without damaging the surrounding skin. The side effects from Er: YAG laser are limited and infrequent. To our knowledge no studies have been performed comparing the use of cryotherapy versus Er:YAG laser in the treatment of seborrheic keratosis.
Our study included 10 patients (3 males and 7 females) with age ranging from 28-62 years and of skin type IV and V. Two comparable lesions were selected in each patient. One lesion was subjected to cryotherapy using cotton tip and the other lesion was treated with the Er:YAG laser.
On comparing cryotherapy with Er:YAG laser treatment for seborrheic keratosis, we found a higher cure rate with the laser (90%) compared to (70%) with cryotherapy. The number of sessions required for cure were more with cryotherapy (average two sessions compared to one for laser).
There was no recurrence with laser but with cryotherapy there recurrence was seen 20%.
The main side effect of both procedures was hyperpigmentation which was seen particularly in sun exposed areas in the patients treated with cryosurgery (80%), while it was less with laser (30%), hyperpigmentation eventually resolved on both sites within three months.
Disadvantages of the Er:YAG laser was that it led to a wound formation which necessitated wound care, while cryotherapy treated lesions either shrunk and fell of or a blister formed which dried and fell of with the lesion.
The cost of the treatment in both modalities must be taken in consideration. Generally, cryotherapy session is cheaper than laser session but clearance of lesions using cryotherapy needed more session than laser making balance in the total cost. However, cryotherapy is a more feasible technique that can be applied in any outpatient setting without requiring special expensive equipment.
In conclusion to this study, we found that the Er:YAG laser gives a higher percentage of complete clearance, needs less sessions than cryotherapy to complete the treatment of a given area, lower rate of recurrence and less discomfort, making it an attractive option whenever available, on the other hand laser needs a special apparatus and is associated with more pain during the procedure.