Skin Tag & Wart Removal

Skin tag and wart removal is an effective way to enhance the appearance of your skin and reduce unsightly features that you find unappealing. Skin tags, also medically known as “acrochordons,” are a common benign growth that more than half of all individuals will experience at some point in their lives. ⁽¹⁾ Similarly, warts are also skin growths that are typically benign, but they are contagious and have viral origins. While neither skin tags nor warts pose significant risks to one’s health, both can cause discomfort if left untreated.

Dr. Monika Kiripolsky is a board-certified dermatologist and fellowship-trained laser and cosmetic surgeon who has faithfully served the Beverly Hills and Pacific Palisades communities and led research efforts in the field for many years. If you need to remove skin tags and warts, Dr. Kiripolsky can do so easily and efficiently.

Schedule a consultation today to improve your skin, or call our Beverly Hills office at (424) 652-6563 with any questions.

About Skin Tag & Wart Removal

Skin tags often develop in places where there is a lot of friction. This can be on the neck, under the breasts, in the armpits, elbows, knees, thighs, and more. Skin tags can form at any age, but they are most common in patients above the age of 40 who naturally experience increased wrinkling and sagging skin as they age. Additionally, obese individuals and type 2 diabetics may be more prone to skin tags caused by insulin resistance. Warts are generally benign growths caused by the human papillomavirus (HPV) and usually do not impact overall health. They however are contagious so it is advised to get them removed. Warts can emerge on any site on the body and grow in many different forms. ⁽²⁾ They can spread through direct skin-to-skin contact or indirectly via surfaces that have come into contact with the virus, like towels or shower floors. A wide variety of treatments are available for wart elimination with the most well-known being cryotherapy using liquid nitrogen.

Benefits

While neither warts or skin tags are life-threatening, many patients still seek to remove them for aesthetic reasons. Skin tags can also cause discomfort in clothing and create painful friction between the skin and certain fabrics. Because warts are contagious, Dr. Kiripolsky recommends having them removed as soon as possible. The presence of both warts and skin tags can be an insecurity for patients, as they cause the skin to appear uneven. When patients receive a removal skin tag or wart removal procedure from Dr. Kiripolsky, they typically experience:

Candidates

Any patient who has warts or skin tags that they want to remove can receive treatment from Dr. Kiripolsky. If you are concerned with the health and appearance of your skin because of the presence of skin tags and/or warts, then you may benefit from a removal treatment.

Patients with recurring warts that have not responded to other treatments will be able to finally eliminate them. Individuals who respond best to a removal procedure are those who are willing to listen closely to Dr. Kiripolsky’s instructions.

Personal Consultation

Meeting with Dr. Kiripolsky is the first step in your treatment plan. At this appointment, Dr. Kiripolsky will examine your skin to assess its overall health. She will also measure the size and distribution of your skin tags and/or warts. With all the relevant information collected, Dr. Kiripolsky will create a treatment plan that targets these issues.

Be prepared to also discuss your general medical history at this appointment. Certain medications and supplements may interfere with your treatment and healing, so you may be asked to alter these regimens before your procedure.

Preparation

Skin tag and wart removals are typically minor and non-invasive procedures that do not necessitate an arduous recovery, but you should still prepare accordingly. You will receive specific preparation instructions from Dr. Kiripolsky or her team after your consultation, but you should plan to:

Procedure

There are a variety of methods available to remove warts and skin tags. Most doctors recommend starting with less complex treatments and increasing measures as needed. The methods used in your treatment will depend on the severity of your skin tags or warts.

Medications

Medication treatments are more effective for warts than skin tags because warts are caused by viruses. Certain compounds have proven to be effective treatments for some patients ⁽²⁾ administered through tablets or topical solutions.

Cryotherapy

Cryotherapy is the most commonly used method for removing warts and skin tags. Dr. Kiripolsky offers patients a refined, accurate, and effective cryotherapy treatment. This procedure entails using liquid nitrogen to freeze the skin and kill the cells in the wart which will cause it to fall off.

Excision

Surgical excision refers to the physical removal of a wart or skin tag with surgical action. While it is the most complex treatment method for these conditions, it is a minimally-invasive and low-risk procedure that offers great results.

The skin around the tag or wart will first be numbed with a local anesthetic. Dr. Kiripolsky will carefully make incisions around the treatment area and remove the affected tissue.

Electrosurgery

Electrosurgery can be used to remove skin tags by delivering a high-frequency electrical current to the tissue. During the procedure, the area around the skin tag is cleaned. A small electrode is used to deliver the electrical current directly to the skin tag. This current generates heat, which effectively destroys the tissue of the skin tag.

Recovery

Recovering from your skin tag or wart removal should take no more than a few days. You can expect some mild soreness at your treatment site. We will provide instructions for how to keep this skin clean and covered while it heals. We recommend keeping bandaids, gauze, and antibiotic ointment on hand to aid your healing process. We typically follow up with all wart removal patients 3 weeks after a treatment.

Results

Wart removals typically take a series of treatments to ensure the virus is destroyed and that it won’t reappear after a removal procedure. If your warts do come back, please return to Dr. Kiripolsky’s office for further treatment. We are committed to completely eliminating recurring warts. Additionally, skin tags will be completely gone, same day with no downtime!

Corresponding & Complementary Procedures

As a board-certified dermatologist, Dr. Kiripolsky offers a variety of treatments for dermatological conditions. If you are struggling with acne or eczema, we can happily develop a treatment plan to manage your symptoms and improve the appearance of your skin. If you have any moles that you want to remove, we can help you achieve your desired appearance with specialized methods.

Skin tags are common signs of aging, as are wrinkles, fine lines, and others. If you would like to rejuvenate your face and skin and address the effects of aging, we have treatments like dermal injections that can help you achieve a more youthful image.

Cost of Skin Tag and Wart Removal in Beverly Hills

The total cost of removing your skin tags and/or warts will depend on their size and distribution. More tags or warts and larger tags or warts will be a more expensive removal procedure than fewer, smaller tags or warts. However, these are relatively inexpensive procedures because they do not require a lot of preparation or extensive procedures.

You will receive a cost estimate at the end of your consultation with Dr. Kiripolsky. We also offer financing options for all procedures.

If you have any questions about payments, pricing, procedures, or more, please feel free to call our Beverly Hills office at (424) 652-6563 and get the information you need.

FAQ

References

1. Pandey A, Sonthalia S. Skin Tags. PubMed. Published 2020. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK547724/
2. Al AM, Nigam PK. Wart (Plantar, Verruca Vulgaris, Verrucae). Nih.gov. Published September 27, 2019. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK431047/