Cryotherapy

What it is

Cryotherapy is a form of treatment in which freezing temperatures are used to destroy tissue. Liquid nitrogen, which reaches temperatures of −189 °C, is the refrigerant used.

What it treats

A variety of lesions can be treated by cryotherapy, including warts, molluscum contagiosum, keloids, skin tags, seborrhoeic and actinic keratoses, pyogenic granuloma, cystic and keloidal acne, and a variety of tumours.

What to expect

In the majority of patients cryotherapy can be performed without anaesthesia. During the procedure liquid nitrogen is sprayed on the lesions for a duration of 5 to 20 seconds. You will experience a burning sensation and slight pain during the procedure and for a little while afterwards, which is well tolerated by most patients. Each lesion may have to be frozen two or three times per sitting.

Afterwards

You may develop a blister at the site within a day. It will gradually form a crust and a scab in seven to ten days. If it is a wart it may fall off in a week or two. Bigger lesions may need multiple sittings at an interval of one to two weeks before there is a response. You may have to take a painkiller immediately afterwards, and use a cream for some time.

Safety

Healing generally produces a satisfactory cosmetic result, and any pigment changes usually fade over a few months. Cryotherapy is a simple office procedure, and whether it is suitable for you is assessed case by case.

Dr Satish wrote the chapter on cryotherapy in the IADVL Textbook of Dermatology, published in 2015.

“Cryotherapy is a fairly safe procedure and complications are few and rare.” — Dr. D. A. Satish, patient leaflet