Skin tags: what they are and when you should remove them

CAN YOU REMOVE SKIN TAGS YOURSELF? Massick says it’s best to check with a doctor, but she has had some patients remove small skin tags themselves. You just need to be careful. FDA: BEWARE OF

SKIN TAG AND MOLE REMOVAL PRODUCTS The FDA is cautioning consumers not to purchase skin tag and mole removers online. Learn more. First, make sure your scissors are sterile. The ones you

find lying at the bottom of your junk drawer could cause an infection. Either boil them or clean them with rubbing alcohol. The scissors also need to be small enough to reach the skin tag’s

base, and sharp. “If they’re dull, you’re not going to be able to cut through the skin,” Massick says. Clean the skin tag area as well. Prepare yourself for a bit of bleeding after you

snip. Have some gauze ready to stop it. Another home-removal technique is to tie off the skin tag with a piece of string or dental floss. If you want to try this, make sure you tie the

string tightly around the base of the skin tag close to your skin. That will cut off the skin tag’s blood supply. (It shouldn’t be painful, Massick says. If it is, take the string off.)

Leave the string in place. It can take a few days for a skin tag to die and fall off. HOW DO DERMATOLOGISTS REMOVE SKIN TAGS? For larger skin tags or any you’re unsure about, see your

dermatologist, Massick says. Your doctor can cut, freeze or burn off the growth. They can also biopsy the removed tissue to make sure it’s benign (not cancerous). The method your doctor uses

to remove skin tags will depend on their size. “If there are a lot of little ones, we can quickly freeze them like we freeze warts,” Lamb says. “If it’s bigger ones, we’ll snip them.” To

freeze them off, also called cryosurgery, your doctor will spray liquid nitrogen onto each spot. The super-cold liquid creates little blisters. “As the blister falls off, the skin tag will

fall off as well,” Massick says. The process takes time. Expect to wait anywhere from a few days to two weeks for the skin tag to fall off. Cauterization involves a similar process, but it

uses heat to burn off skin tags. Another advantage to seeing a doctor is that it’s less painful than the do-it-yourself method. An injection of lidocaine numbs the area around larger skin

tags, so you won’t feel anything during the procedure. CAN SKIN TAGS COME BACK AFTER YOU REMOVE THEM? A skin tag shouldn’t grow back after an in-office procedure, but don’t be surprised if

you see a new one in the same area. “They tend to congregate in similar locations — skin folds, arms and neck, in between the thighs and under the breasts. So if you have one, you’ll

probably get more as time goes on,” Massick says.