We offer surgical removal of skin tags at our private minor surgery clinic near Newcastle. Our friendly and experienced team offer a convenient and professional service which puts the patient at the heart of the process, and achieves excellent cosmetic results.
Skin tags are common benign growths of the skin that become common as we age. They are fleshy, skin coloured growths, that often occur at sites where there may be friction, such as in the armpits, on the neck, under the breasts, or in the groin. We also treat skin tags on the eyelids, and around the anus and genitals.
Shave / Snip Excision
This involves using an instrument such as a scalpel or surgical scissors to remove the growth. It usually gives excellent cosmetic results, with tiny scars that are either very unobtrusive or invisible.
We start by injecting a small amount of local anaesthetic under the tag using a very fine needle. Once the tag is numbed, it is cut away. The Hyfrecator is used to seal any blood vessels underneath. No stitches are necessary. The result is a tiny scab, usually around 2mm across. This will drop away after a week or two.
Diathermy or Electrocautery
Very small skin tags are treated with diathermy. After the local anaesthetic, the skin tag is picked up with diathermy forceps, and an electrical current is passed through it. This destroys the tissue, which will shrivel up and drop away after a week or so. This technique is useful for people with an area of multiple small skin tags.
Surgical Excision
Surgical excision is used for very large skin tags which would have a poor cosmetic result from shave excision due to the size of the scar. An elliptical incision is made into the skin around the base of the skin tag, which is then removed. The skin in closed with dissolving stitches in two layers to give a strong wound which has the best chance of healing with a good cosmetic result. The site will be covered with a waterproof dressing and needs to be kept dry for five days. This procedure will result in a linear scar, which usually fades to a thin white line.
The cost of a consultation is £100. Unlike some clinics, we do not bundle this in with the cost of your procedure, as we believe it is important to offer our patients a no-pressure, personalised consultation with our experienced doctor. As the cost of the consultation has been paid in full, there is never any pressure or expectation for patients to have a procedure, when sometimes, reassurance or advice is all that is needed.
The cost of a single skin tag removal by shave excision or diathermy is £175. Subsequent excisions (during the same visit) are charged at £75, and bespoke pricing is offered for people with lots of skin tags to be removed.
Skin tag removal from the eyelid (or close to the eye) is charged at £250.
Genital skin tag excision (male or female) is charged from £250, subject to examination findings.
Anal skin tag excision is available from £400, further information here.
Surgical excision of larger skin tags is charged at £425.
Histology (lab analysis of the tissue we have removed) is charged at £95 per sample. We pass this cost straight on from our laboratory partners with no markup. Skin tags are rarely sent for histology.
