Actinic Keratosis And Its Implications
Actinic keratosis is a kind of premalignant condition that is identified by patches or bumps that are usually flat and raised, scaly, thick, or crusty. It can also be called solar keratosis and senile keratosis. Besides from the term sun spot, another usual term for this is precancerous spot. Skin experts shorten this condition as “AK”. Its measure ranges from that of a pinhead up to more than an inch across. Its color may be light or dark, pink, red, tan, or a combination of these colors.
Touching the actinic keratosis can confirm its occurrence rather than merely seeing it. The crust or the scale that becomes evident is normally, dry, rough and resembles a horn. A sharply painful sensation can be sensed when one has this. If the person is highly exposed to the sun, he may experience itchiness. Body parts that are most of the time exposed to the sun are where actinic keratoses may appear in clusters. These body parts are forearms, lips, neck, back of hands, ears, bald scalp, and face.
This kind of condition is dangerous as it may be a manifestation of cancer in the skin. Provided that the spots are detected immediately and undergo proper treatment, skin cancer is not life-threatening. If actinic keratoses are not attended medically, they have the tendency to grow larger and be infected as it invade the tissues that surround it.
Accumulation of the damage coming from the sun to the skin is likely to happen over time. Keep in mind that reflective surfaces bounce off UV rays. Those who have fair skins are most likely to have this kind of skin condition. The same way goes for those who have green, gray or blue eyes, and those who have red or blonde hair. This is so due to low pigments that protects their skin from sunburns. However, the development of actinic keratosis can also occur to dark-skinned people who have utmost exposure to the sun without proper protection.
Actinic keratosis can be removed through different treatments. There is not always a need to get rid of all of the actinic keratoses. One of the most typical treatment is called cryosurgery. Liquid nitrogen is applied in order to freeze off lesions. Utilized here is an applicator with a cottop tip or a special spray device.
If there are many lesions, an effective treatment is through applying topical cream. Another method is through chemical peels or curettage where scraping of lesion is done.
To sum it all up, it is highly advised by many skin doctors to seek them first if you want to learn more regarding this condition.
