Evaluation and Comparison of the Efficacy and Safety of Cryotherapy and Electrosurgery in the Treatment of Sebaceous Hyperplasia, Seborrheic Keratosis, Cherry Angioma, and Skin Tag: A Blinded Randomized Clinical Trial Study.

BACKGROUND

Cryotherapy and electrosurgery are two commonly used methods to remove sebaceous hyperplasia, seborrheic keratosis, cherry angioma, and skin tags, which can be bothersome and uncomfortable. We compare the effectiveness and adverse effects of cryotherapy and electrosurgery in treating these skin conditions.

METHOD

The study was conducted as an assessor-blind trial. The 32 lesions in each lesion group were divided into two treatment groups, cryotherapy and electrosurgery, using sealed envelopes. We collected baseline information, which included age, gender, lesion location, and consent, from the patients. Follow-up visits were scheduled at 2 weeks, 1 month, and 3 months after the initial treatment session to evaluate the response rate of the lesions. Based on before-after clinical images, this evaluation encompassed patient and physician satisfaction (no change, little, somewhat, good, and excellent), and any potential complications.

RESULTS

The mean age of cryotherapy group was 52.04 ± 11.59 years, while the mean age in the electrosurgery group was 50.48 ± 10.70 years ( > 0.05). Regarding gender, 15 (23.4%) in the cryotherapy and 24 (37.5%) in the electrosurgery were female ( > 0.05). Physician and patient satisfaction increased significantly over time in the cryotherapy and electrosurgery groups ( < 0.001). For sebaceous hyperplasia, cherry angioma and skin tags, the degree of satisfaction of patients and physicians was significantly higher for electrosurgery than cryotherapy during follow-up ( < 0.05). However, seborrheic keratosis responded better to cryotherapy. Hypopigmentation and depigmentation occurred in 2 (3.1%) and 4 (6.3%) of the cryotherapy cases, respectively. Hypopigmentation and atrophic scars also occurred in 4 (6.3%) and 2 (3.1%) of the cases in the electrosurgical group in different sessions.

CONCLUSION

It appears that electrosurgery is more effective in the treatment of sebaceous hyperplasia, cherry angioma and skin tags, while cryotherapy is more effective in the treatment of seborrheic keratosis.