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How is actinic keratosis treated?
How to prevent actinic keratoses?
What is actinic keratosis?
Should I see a dermatologist if I have actinic keratosis?
Feb 23, 2022 · Should you have an AK, an accurate diagnosis and treatment can: Reduce your risk of developing skin cancer. Get rid of an AK, replacing it with new, healthy-looking skin. Help ease symptoms, such as itch, pain, or tenderness. Most people who have AKs (or think they may have an AK) see a dermatologist.
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Actinic keratoses vary in appearance. Symptoms include:
•Rough, dry or scaly patch of skin, usually less than 1 inch (2.5 centimeters) in diameter
•Flat to slightly raised patch or bump on the top layer of skin
•In some cases, a hard, wartlike surface
•Color variations, including pink, red or brown
•Itching, burning, bleeding or crusting
It can be difficult to distinguish between noncancerous spots and cancerous ones. So it's best to have new skin changes evaluated by a health care provider — especially if a scaly spot or patch persists, grows or bleeds.
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An actinic keratosis is caused by frequent or intense exposure to ultraviolet (UV) rays from the sun or tanning beds.
Anyone can develop actinic keratoses. But you're at increased risk if you:
•Have red or blond hair and blue or light-colored eyes
•Have a history of a lot of sun exposure or sunburn
•Tend to freckle or burn when exposed to sunlight
•Are older than 40
•Live in a sunny place
If treated early, actinic keratosis can be cleared up or removed. If left untreated, some of these spots might progress to squamous cell carcinoma. This is a type of cancer that usually isn't life-threatening if detected and treated early.
Sun safety helps prevent actinic keratoses. Take these steps to protect your skin from the sun:
•Limit your time in the sun. Especially avoid time in the sun between 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. And avoid staying in the sun so long that you get a sunburn or a suntan.
•Use sunscreen. Before spending time outdoors, apply a broad-spectrum water-resistant sunscreen with a sun protection factor (SPF) of at least 30, as the American Academy of Dermatology recommends. Do this even on cloudy days.
Use sunscreen on all exposed skin. And use lip balm with sunscreen on your lips. Apply sunscreen at least 15 minutes before going outside and reapply it every two hours — or more often if you're swimming or sweating.
Sunscreen is not recommended for babies under 6 months. Rather, keep them out of the sun if possible. Or protect them with shade, hats, and clothing that covers the arms and legs.
•Cover up. For extra protection from the sun, wear tightly woven clothing that covers your arms and legs. Also wear a broad-brimmed hat. This provides more protection than does a baseball cap or golf visor.
How is actinic keratosis treated? Treatment for an actinic keratosis may include: Cryotherapy. This treatment freezes the lesion. Topical chemotherapy. This is medicine applied to the skin. Laser surgery. This can remove lesions from the face and scalp, and actinic cheilitis from the lips. Other treatments. These are done to remove or destroy ...
Nov 17, 2023 · Treatment Types. Self-Care. Success Rates. Recurrence Rates. Actinic keratosis is scaly or rough patches or bumps on the skin. While it’s considered common, it requires treatment because the cells in the patches of skin have the potential to turn into a type of skin cancer known as squamous cell skin cancer .
- Angelica Bottaro
How is actinic keratosis treated? There are several ways to treat AK, including: Topical destruction: AK primarily affects the top layer of the skin, so when the patient has only one or a few isolated growths, the dermatologist will usually destroy that area of the skin.
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Mar 7, 2024 · There are multiple effective treatment options for actinic keratosis (AK), including destructive therapies (eg, cryosurgery, surgery, dermabrasion, photodynamic therapy [PDT]), topical medications (eg, topical fluorouracil, imiquimod, topical tirbanibulin, diclofenac), and field ablation treatments (eg, chemical peels, laser resurfacing). The ...
Treatment options include topical creams, gels, or ointments such as fluorouracil (5-FU), tirbanibulin, imiquimod, or diclofenac. These treatments destroy the affected area of the epidermis, the outermost layer of the skin, which usually cures actinic keratosis.
