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Seborrhoeic keratosis

Keratosis seborrhoica (verruca senilis) · Seboroická keratóza

What it is

Harmless waxy 'stuck-on' brown growths that multiply with age — the barnacles of ageing skin.

Symptoms & signs

  • Brown to black, waxy, warty patches
  • look stuck on the skin
  • itch or catch on clothes
  • many on the back, chest and face

🚩 Get help if…

  • see a doctor soon Spot that grows fast, bleeds or does not heal
  • see a doctor soon Spot with uneven colour or edges unlike the others
  • see a doctor soon Many new spots appearing suddenly
  • see a doctor soon A new spot that looks different from all the rest

Where it strikes

Medical treatment

  • Nothing needed
  • dermoscopy to tell from melanoma
  • freezing, curettage or laser for troublesome ones
  • biopsy if uncertain

Natural & lifestyle

  • Sun protection
  • leave them alone rather than pick

Emerging & experimental

  • Topical high-strength hydrogen peroxide
  • laser techniques

Alternative, off-label & anecdotal

Approaches used outside the guidelines, with what their supporters report and what testing has found so far.

  • Apple cider vinegar or tea tree oil — anecdotal; can burn surrounding skin anecdotal / traditional
  • Thread tying — anecdotal; risks infection and missing a melanoma anecdotal / traditional
  • Urea and salicylic acid creams — soften and flatten them in small studies early / small studies

ICD codes