Abstract
Cryotherapy of the skin has been used aesthetically for many years. Although other techniques including lasers and chemical peeling can offer a broader array of improvements, cryotherapy remains one of the most commonly used treatments by skin specialists as a readily available, safe, and cost-effective mode of treatment for benign and pre-malignant skin lesions including lentigenes, verrucae, seborrheic keratoses, and actinic keratoses. When treating aesthetic patients, it is critical to avoid overtreatment, which can lead to side effects including skin blistering, erythema, and persistant hypopigmentation.
The open spray method and other modern cryotherapy techniques are useful and safe, having been used in a variety of settings for over 40 years. Outcomes are improved by following proper technique, reviewing post-operative expectations, and avoiding treatment of undefined entities as partial cryosurgical destruction can mask clinical impression and complicate diagnostic methods.
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© 2012 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Swann, M.H. (2012). Aesthetic Cryotherapy. In: Prendergast, P., Shiffman, M. (eds) Aesthetic Medicine. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20113-4_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-20113-4_13
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