Actinic Keratosiss

What is Actinic Keratosiss

Actinic keratoses are single or multiple, fleshcolored or slightly hyperpigmented, dry, rough, scaly lesions which occur on skin exposed to the sun. An actinic keratosis is a scaly or crusty bump that forms on the skin surface. Cells are atypical, and they are considered to be pre-malignant because some may eventually become squamous cell cancers. Anyone who develops AKs has extensive sun-damaged skin. This makes one more susceptible to other forms of skin cancer, including melanoma.

A keratosis is most likely to appear on sun exposed areas: face, ears, bald scalp, neck, backs of hands and forearms, and lips.

Treatment of Actinic Keratosiss

There are several treatment options for AKs, including cryosurgery (freezing), surgical excision, curettage (scraping) with or without electrosurgery (heat generated by an electric current) and topical (applied to the skin) medications. Half of the keratosis will go away on their own if one avoid all sun for a few years. One often sees several actinic keratoses show up at the same time.