Skin Tags

[patti24_2000]

Hello, does anyone know how they go about removing skin tags? About 7 years ago I gained about 60 lbs. At that time, I began getting skin tags on my neck. Since then I lost all the weight due to my Pancreatitis condition. Now, I want to have them removed and have read a bit about it. Also, is it expensive to have done? I no longer have insurance.

[cherrybomb]

Hi @patti24_2000 I can't for the life of me remember what the product is called but i've seen an advertisement on television for something for this that is similar to wart removal products and i know you can get it at the pharmacy so i would would just go in and ask.

I know you can get it done at the doctor's but i have no idea how expensive it would be, sorry.

Cheers

[patti24_2000]

Hi @patti24_2000 I can't for the life of me remember what the product is called but i've seen an advertisement on television for something for this that is similar to wart removal products and i know you can get it at the pharmacy so i would would just go in and ask.

I know you can get it done at the doctor's but i have no idea how expensive it would be, sorry.

Cheers

Thank you @cherrybomb . I had not heard of this. I will go online and see what I can come up with. Appreciate the information.

[Piper]

@patti24_2000 , my girlfriend had literally dozens of skin tags. She went to her family

doctor, who proceeded to whack them all off with a scalpel. Not an option if you don't

have insurance and she spent a few days in discomfort, but she thought getting rid of

all them at once was worth it. Just a thought.

[SpaceMatters]

@patti24_2000 , I agree w/ @Piper in regards to how it's done. I believe the docs cauterize them after they cut them off w/a special very sharp and small knife. Dr. Oz had it demonstrated on one of his shows. I am pretty sure they used local numbing agent first.

No insurance. Hmmm. Maybe call around to local derms and ask them about self-pay and approximate cost. You will have to sweet talk them to get that info, but if you say the average skin tag, and how many, maybe they will give you an idea.

[barkingmad]

I get these from time to time, so I ice the area til its numb, grab the ole toenail clippers and whammo! Bandage with neosporin and bob's your uncle, you're done.

[cherrybomb]

@patti24_2000 The stuff i was thinking of is "Dr. Scholl's Skin Tag Remover"

Here is a quote from the product description:

Removes skin tags with as few as 1 treatment. With Derma-Freeze™ Technology for skin tag removal. Doctor-proven method. Easy to use at home. For the removal of skin tags on adults 18 years and older.

I'm sure there are other products out there, hope this helps!

[patti24_2000]

I get these from time to time, so I ice the area til its numb, grab the ole toenail clippers and whammo! Bandage with neosporin and bob's your uncle, you're done.

Really?? How much does it hurt? I'm a big baby. Does it depend on the size? Mine are mostly small with only a few that you can grab a hold of. Do they bleed quite a bit?

[Quaalude]

@patti24_2000
I've removed various skin tags over the years from my neck and arms. I'm active and wear a simple gold chain. Since skin tags typically appear in skin folds/creases and usually due to friction, I get them from time to time. The ice-numbing method works well with only a brief pinch and a tiny bit of blood loss. Just be sure to use a very sharp, sterile implement (scalpel, nail clippers work very well) and utilize appropriate aftercare. I've also strangulated them at their base with a strand of fine thread and just let them fall off. Overall, I believe the best method of removing annoying skin tags depends greatly on the size of the tag you're trying to remove.

Another great way is freezing them off. Electrical component cooling spray is available at Amazon for around $9-14/can and I have used this product in the past to freeze a wart, skin tag, etc. Handy stuff to have around and certainly cheaper than a visit to a dermatologist. It basically freezes the skin to around -65F and causes frostbite to the lesion. Cheapest and most effective way I've found to remove troublesome, BENIGN skin growths. Not a physician here and however you choose to go at your skin tags, always use sterile technique to stave off infection. Hope this helps a bit.

[numberthirteen]

Hello, does anyone know how they go about removing skin tags? About 7 years ago I gained about 60 lbs. At that time, I began getting skin tags on my neck. Since then I lost all the weight due to my Pancreatitis condition. Now, I want to have them removed and have read a bit about it. Also, is it expensive to have done? I no longer have insurance.

Simple drug/knife and pain free method of removing skin tags is surgical ligation using dental floss.

Wikipedia:

Surgical ligation can be performed at home by tightly tying the base with dental floss (commonly with a simple Surgeon's knot), and it will then wither away in about three or four days.

Any knot will do.

My partner had one removed in this manner a couple of months ago as the skin tag was chaffing on clothing and becoming sore.

[exponentially]

The efficacy of any given treatment will depend on the "root" cause of the skin tag. Warts being on the more tenacious end of the scale with benign keratoses on the other.

Freezing, cauterizing, and slicing and the typical methods employed. Freezing is typical of sizable warts/tags, with electro-cauterizing used with spots that require accuracy. Spots that need to be biopsied with be removed with a scalpel in order to be preserved for analysis.

Any method should be okay for removing your typical keratosis, but warts are often recurrent with the new-school approach of using the nitrogen blow gun; the cotton swab dipped in nitrogen works best IMO. Over the counter freeze solutions don't work for warts but might work for only the smallest of keratosis, given that it's just compressed alcohols that don't get nearly cold enough.

I would estimate that a single office visit without insurance would cost around $200.

[Graydog]

I get a lot of little ones around my neck and abdoman areas and have had good results using brand new sharp nail cuticle nippers cleaned with alcohol. Sometimes use tweezers to grab it and hold it, then snip off with the nippers. Can numb with ice or other things but make sure I have it in exactly the right place and I just do it fast and really no pain. No real bleeding either and I have tendancy to bleed (on aspirin), can use styptic for shaving or even the powder for the dogs toenail trimming if won't stop. I usually don't need bandaid or dressing. They do sometines come back after a few years but doing it yourself will buy you time and overall is free!

[numberthirteen]

I get a lot of little ones around my neck and abdoman areas and have had good results using brand new sharp nail cuticle nippers cleaned with alcohol. Sometimes use tweezers to grab it and hold it, then snip off with the nippers. Can numb with ice or other things but make sure I have it in exactly the right place and I just do it fast and really no pain. No real bleeding either and I have tendancy to bleed (on aspirin), can use styptic for shaving or even the powder for the dogs toenail trimming if won't stop. I usually don't need bandaid or dressing. They do sometines come back after a few years but doing it yourself will buy you time and overall is free!

UK Doctors always use the least expensive, least invasive and most pain free method first:

Tie it off with dental floss. Cost ? About 2p

[juniperpansy]

Really?? How much does it hurt? I'm a big baby. Does it depend on the size? Mine are mostly small with only a few that you can grab a hold of. Do they bleed quite a bit?

I've used nail clippers to clip a couple off too after my mom (a nurse) recommended it. It doesn't really hurt, just a small pinch. Dont remember about blood. The main 'hurt' is having to watch yourself do it which makes it worse than it actually is

If you have a friend who you could ask to do it for you would be the best option I think


(I didn't using anything to try to numb my skin)

[need2losewt]

Has anyone tried skin tag removers as seen on tv and sold in drugs stores? Does it work like a wart remover over the counter cream? I don't think I am brave enough to use nail clippers!
What about re-occurrence? Do they grow back if you use the skin tag remover from the drug store?

[Gman]

I have had great success with dandelion milk. Pick some fresh dandelions, milk them in an air tight container. Use a cotton swab liberally soaked and adhere with medical tape. Repeat often and after a few days they just melt off. May need some tweezers at the end, but no blood.

My 2 cents

[dodihere]

I removed a skin tag on my nose and under my eye with fingernail clippers! Neither one of them have ever grown back. I am now going to conquer one under my arm however I usually go into freak out mode and look pretty seizurish right before I cut them off because I scare myself so bad. Honestly it isn't bad at all. Just takes nerves. I have had 3 surgeries on my leg I was more scared removing my own skin tags.

[fortgatlin]

If you go to a dermatologist, as I did, it takes virtually no time whatsoever and you'll barely feel it. As one of the above posters said, $200.00 will do the trick. If your family doc can do it it would be just the price of an office visit. The thing with the dermatologist is that even if you had insurance they would not pay for it (in my experience) as it is a "cosmetic" issue. But the dermatologist will also (again, in my experience) do a full skin exam, which, while it's no fun taking all of your clothes off and letting a complete stranger examine you from head to toe, will rule out (or remove and biopsy) any moles or skin cancers you may have and your skin will be one less thing you will have to worry about for many years. Remember, your skin is your largest organ, therefore something you should take good care of. Although I can not cite my source I have read that your skin is considered by many as your third kidney, expelling up to a pound of waste per day, so taking care of it is that important.

Also, I've done the fingernail clipper thing and that works well but as everybody else has already pointed out, it just seems like it's going to hurt so bad (which it does not) that it is hard to do without freaking yourself out.

Kind regards,

J

[mrmag00]

If you have patience you can remove tags and moles with tea tree oil, apply it directly at least twice a day for a few weeks. I have done this successfully and I'm currently removing a larger mole.

[sniffleton]

If they're all in one place, you may be able to get them surgically removed all at once. I had one since birth, so when I had a cyst removed I asked them to take it off. I don't think mine was the kind you could "burn" or "freeze" off. They made a freaking incision and it had like 1-2 stitches. Ive never heard of the other methods as being excruciating though.