Category
Dermatology Procedural
Typical Use
Excise superficial skin lesions and perform curettage and cautery.
Description
A ring shaped, sharp edged instrument used to scrape and remove epidermal and superficial dermal lesions such as warts, superficial basal cell carcinomas, and keratoses, often combined with electrocautery for hemostasis. Technique emphasizes controlled pressure, specimen orientation for pathology when indicated, and postoperative wound care to optimize healing and cosmetic outcome. Curettage is efficient for select lesions but may not provide full thickness margins required for suspected invasive disease; clinicians must select appropriate cases and counsel patients on scarring and recurrence risk.