What is a cutaneous horn? Keratoma (keratosis) - types (follicular, seborrheic, actinic, horny), cause of formation, treatment (removal), folk remedies, photo Skin horn has grown again

Aging of the body, in addition to the appearance of wrinkles on the skin, is sometimes accompanied by a more serious change, which is called a cutaneous horn. A process in the form of an animal horn can appear on any part of the body. Its formation causes discomfort, but it is impossible to remove the formation on your own, since this is not an age-related skin change, but a benign tumor.

The development of the skin horn is an age-related non-aesthetic non-malignant neoplasm that can also bring physical discomfort.

What it is?

The horn of the skin is also called horny keratoma. This is a dermatological pathology, manifested by the formation of a process on the surface of the skin that looks like an animal horn, from where the name of the disease came from. The horn consists of keratinized cells of the epidermis, similar in structure to the nails. In fact, this is not a papilloma, but a benign tumor or the initial stage of squamous cell carcinoma. It is especially dangerous if such a formation appears on the face.

Most often, the horn of the skin is diagnosed in people aged 60-70 years.

Causes

The cutaneous horn is formed due to a pathological change in the epidermis, which is observed with hydrocyanic keratosis or physical damage to existing benign formations, such as warts. Provoke the disease can:

• viral damage to the body;
• skin injury;
• infectious lesions of wounds;
• complication of hydrocyanic keratosis;
• lupus erythematosus or tuberculous lupus.

Where does it appear?

Horn formation is more often diagnosed in women. A tumor can form on any part of the skin, for example, on a finger, but more often a skin horn grows on the face. Horny processes are formed in the area of ​​​​the eyelids, on the auricles, on the cheeks, and also on the head in the hair. Rarely seen on mucous membranes. Because of this location, they are easy to injure, which is very dangerous, since as a result of injury, the formation is malignant - it degenerates into a malignant tumor.

Types of pathology

There are 2 types of horny keratoma:

Clinical picture

At the beginning of the formation of a tumor, a small seal forms on the surface of the skin, which gradually grows and becomes more dense. Gradually rising above the skin, the formation changes color from yellow to brown. The top of the horn is thinner than the bottom. The skin around the base of the tumor becomes inflamed. On a long formation, multiple longitudinal furrows are visible.

The growth rate of the neoplasm is different, and the length makes it possible to make an assumption about its belonging to a particular pathology:

• if the horn is shorter than 1 cm, it is most likely a basiloma or a prussial keratoma;
• if the tumor is longer than 1 cm, a seborrheic wart or papilloma keratinization can be assumed.

If you suspect the formation of a skin horn, you should immediately consult a doctor.

Diagnostics

Horny keratoma requires special treatment, therefore it is important to distinguish it from fibroma, warty nevus and similar pathologies. When making a diagnosis, the doctor relies on the clinical picture. If the 2nd type of keratoma is established, the nature of the disease is revealed through histological examination. With the help of a biopsy, the nature of the skin formation is determined, and further treatment depends on this. It is impossible to independently determine the type and nature of the pathology, you need to consult a doctor.

Skin horn treatment

Treatment of a skin horn without an accurate diagnosis is impossible. The methods of therapy depend on whether the tumor is benign or malignant. The elimination of this phenomenon is carried out in beauty parlors, especially if the horn appeared on the eyelid or on the face, in the centers of oncology and dermatology. In no case should you try to remove the horn yourself, this will lead to serious complications.

Removal of build-up

Therapy of horny keratoma involves the complete removal of the skin horn. For this, the following methods are used:

• Surgical intervention. The growth is cut off with a scalpel during a classic operation. The resulting wound is sutured, and after healing, a scar remains in place of the horn.
• Cryodestruction. The tumor is frozen with liquid az. As a result of the procedure, the tumor disappears, there are no scars in its place.
• Laser exposure. It is considered the most effective and painless method, which takes a few minutes. The growth is quickly cut off, and the blood vessels are “sealed” with a laser, which prevents bleeding. No traces remain on the skin, which is especially important if the tumor of the eyelid was eliminated.
• Curettage, electrocoagulation. The method is used to eliminate growths up to 2 cm in diameter. With sharp curettes, under local anesthesia, the “nest” of the growth is scraped out, and then it is “burned out” 2–3 times with an electrocoagulator.

Representing a kind of neoplasm, consisting of a horny mass, cutaneous horn in a child is extremely rare, being a disease of an adult and in many respects an elderly age category. Among the cases of the development of such an ailment, its true and false types can be distinguished. Moreover, the one that is characterized by the true one does not require special reasons for its occurrence, but the false one arises and develops mainly as a consequence of any pathological process.

Characteristics of etiology and pathogenesis

A favorable background for the appearance of this neoplasm is the proliferation of the epidermis, precancerous and senile keratosis. It is almost impossible to determine the nature of the appearance of the skin horn without a histological examination. It may be one of the variants of actinic keratoma, which can mask a squamous cell skin cancer. It should be noted: the concept of "skin horn" should only be a preliminary diagnosis, which characterizes the features of the clinical manifestation of this pathological formation.

Many leading dermatologists of the world, trying to understand the factors that provoke the occurrence of such a strange phenomenon, indicate a genetic mutational predisposition, which is provoked by microtrauma of healthy skin, damage to the epidermal layers of an actinic nature, or special types of viral infections.

Clinical manifestations

The clinical manifestations of the "skin horn" in the patient are horny masses, which have a typical growth similar to the horn of an animal. The shape of the neoplasm is conical, the color is dark yellow-brown, the consistency is dense. The surface layer is smooth with the possible presence of multiple longitudinal grooves. The presence of inflammatory phenomena is noted exclusively at the base of the neoplasm, which may look like an erythematous corolla. Sizes can be very different, sometimes reaching a length of thirty centimeters. The base of such a keratinized growth can be crowned with seborrheic warts, keratinized papillomas or keratoacanthoma.

In cases of damage to the lower lip area by a horn formation, the skin horn, as a rule, does not grow more than a centimeter in height. The cause of damage to the lips can be lupus erythematosus or tuberculosis, leukoplakia and other similar ailments.

The cutaneous horn, as a rule, is not a multiple type formation and appears in a single instance.

The development of this pathology is noted mainly in female patients of the older and elderly age category, forming in the area of ​​the cheeks or ears. The cutaneous horn in a child, if it occurs, is exclusively against the background of the development of a hyperkeratotic nevus. A favorite place of dislocation is the head in the part of the hairline. Occasionally, there were cases when the presence of such a horny growth was recorded on mucous membranes. For all its pathology, the skin horn growing in any part of the body except the head under the hairline was a benign formation.

The growth of the skin horn is slow. In most cases, only the growth of the horny mass was observed in a limited range, which can rise above the level of the surface of the skin by no more than one and a half centimeters, resembling a miniature animal horn. Sometimes the overgrown keratinized masses could resemble claws similar to those that animals or birds have.

The detection of cancer in the study of neoplasms is due, as a rule, to its occurrence in the areas of the tumor location.

Diagnostics

When diagnosing a skin horn, a neoplasm should be clearly differentiated from such formations as a wart, fibroma, corn, as well as a warty nevus or verrucous psoriasis and other similar ailments.

Therapeutic measures

Treatment of the skin horn is indicated exclusively by surgical methods. Perhaps after the removal of the neoplasm, the use of diathermocoagulation of its base. The patient is recommended to be monitored by a dermatologist with periodic consultations of a specialist in oncology.

Cutaneous horn is a rare disease that is most often diagnosed in people of advanced age, outwardly it is very noticeable and brings a lot of negative feelings to the patient. His appearance may be the reason for the examination.

What is a cutaneous horn?

Representing a not very aesthetic disease formed by the outer cells of the upper layer of the epidermis, the cutaneous horn looks like the horny process of animals - it is for this reason that the disease has such a name.

Most often, this condition appears on its own and is considered, or is the initial stage of oncology - which is considered one of the most aggressive diseases.

Therefore, when it appears, a histological examination of the cells of which this formation consists should immediately be carried out.

Where can this cylindrical skin growth occur and what varieties can it be?

Localization

Having a cylindrical shape, the skin horn has a pronounced dense or dense texture, its color ranges from light beige to brown with a yellowish tint, and the dimensions can be very small and very pronounced.

Resembling the horn of animals, this disease brings a lot of trouble to the person who has fallen ill with it. But this condition has a great danger in connection with the possibility of its degeneration into a malignant neoplasm.

This disease is somewhat more common in women; the place of its localization is mainly the area of ​​the face (on the skin of the ears, on the cheeks) and the head (its hairy part), occasionally this condition is observed on the semi-mucous and mucous membranes.

Photograph of the skin horn on the eyelid of the facial region

Outwardly, this neoplasm has a pronounced base, which is significant in area, towards the upper part, which sharpens and noticeably narrows. More frequent cases of its formation in single specimens, multiple neoplasms of this type are relatively rare.

Kinds

The neoplasm under consideration is of a benign nature. However, under the influence of certain factors and even for no apparent reason, its nature may change, and the neoplasm may become malignant.

Skin horn can occur in two main types:

• primary form- this type of disease is not dangerous, but is currently not well understood. The formation of the horn itself takes place, its compaction and gradual darkening of the color, on it in this form there is no course of inflammatory processes and other lesions.

The transition of the benign nature of this form of the disease to a malignant one is possible to a lesser extent, however, at the beginning of the growth of such an formation, one should carefully monitor the process of its development;

• secondary form- at this stage, it is more malignant and for this reason this stage of the skin horn is considered very dangerous. It can occur during the development of an inflammatory process in other neoplasms on the body, while the course of such a process is often characterized by a chronic course.

Also, the appearance of a secondary form of this condition can be caused by skin injuries, growth or degeneration (usually malignant) of warts and papillomas.

Both forms have pronounced differences, the earliest stage of the disease has a greater chance of a complete cure.

Reasons for the development of the disease

The most obvious causes of this condition include the growth and increase in the volume of the skin, the upper layer of the epidermis. This may begin as a result of the progression of the husk, damage to the tissues of the wart or papilloma.

The provoking factors for the formation of a skin horn include:

• excessive exposure to the open sun without the use of special means;
• long-term illness caused by a viral infection;
• injury to the skin and entry into the wound of the virus.

Doctors also include manifestations of lupus erythematosus and lupus erythematosus as risk factors.

This disease can manifest itself even in children, the most common causes of this are skin injuries and incompletely cured infectious diseases.

Clinical picture of senile horn formation

The appearance of this neoplasm of a benign nature usually begins with the appearance of a seal on the surface of the skin, which grows and acquires a pronounced density.

Its color, as it grows in size, also changes to light yellow and then to brown.

As the size increases, the neoplasm takes the form of a horn, its upper part is much narrower than the base. And along the circumference of the base, a red inflamed strip is visible. The main focus of inflammation is located in the upper part of the skin cone.

With the growth of the horn, its gradual compaction occurs - the skin in this place becomes more and more rigid, longitudinal grooves are visible in large numbers along the length of the neoplasm.

The growth of the length of the horn can occur at a slower pace, however, its rapid growth rate is often found. And it is by the size of this neoplasm that you can get a preliminary forecast:

• if the total length of the body of the horn is less than 1 cm, then the neoplasm can be diagnosed as a basiloma or a hydrocyanic keratoma;
• with a greater total length of the body of the horn, a keratinizing papilloma, a seborrheic wart is diagnosed with a high percentage of confidence.

Formations in the form of a horn are more common in a single copy, especially often they begin their growth on various parts of the face - eyelids, ears, cheeks. On the red border of the lips, a skin horn can also form, and in this case its size is not more than 1 cm.

Diagnostics

When any neoplasm appears, its histological analysis should be carried out, which will determine the nature and put a further prognosis of the disease.

When forming this character, one should not confuse it with various types, corns. After the procedure, it should be excluded using a differential examination, for which a piece of tissue taken for analysis is carried out.

Its base is considered the most vulnerable area of ​​​​this neoplasm - it is here that all the many processes that caused the pathological growth of tissues and the formation of a skin horn take place. For a more detailed analysis, the tissue is taken precisely from the base of the horn, which makes it possible to determine what type of neoplasm it belongs to - benign or malignant.

Treatment Methods

Achievements of modern medicine allow you to quickly cope with this unpleasant disease. Skin horn treatment can be carried out both in cosmetic and cosmetology centers, and in oncological medical institutions.

After the operation to remove the skin growth, a scar or a small scar may remain on the surface of the skin.

The most commonly used methods include:

• if the neoplasm has reached a large size, then surgical excision of the skin growth is used - after the operation, a suture is applied to this place;
• - the operation carried out by means of exposure to the emerging neoplasm of liquid nitrogen is carried out quickly, and at the site of skin growth often there is no visible trace and scar;
• The most modern and least destructive methods of skin horn removal include exposure to a laser beam - the operation takes very little time, and after it does not require a significant rehabilitation period.

This method - laser removal is considered the least painful, and the removal of overgrown tissue is carried out by the action of light.

Traditional medicine also offers its own methods of treating and stopping the growth of this neoplasm, however, in terms of effectiveness, they cannot be compared with the removal of the build-up.

Forecast and prevention

As a preventive measure, it is recommended to avoid injury to the skin as much as possible, reduce the time spent in the open sun and the use of sunscreens when sunbathing, as well as regulate your diet: according to doctors, it should contain enough vitamin C daily.

After removal of the build-up, the prognosis is usually completely favorable. The malignancy of this neoplasm is no more than 5% of cases. Relapses of the disease are not often diagnosed.

Regular examination of your skin of the whole body will allow you to detect the beginning of any pathological process in time; this is an important preventive measure, since the initial stage of any disease is easier to cure.

Be healthy!

The cutaneous horn (or horny keratoma) is a neoplasm that consists of cells of the spinous layer of the epithelium and looks like an animal horn, which determined the name. The disease mainly affects the elderly and can be based on or. Of particular danger is the skin horn on the face (lips, nose, cheeks, auricles), so a mandatory histological examination is recommended.

What can cause a skin horn?

The formation of a skin horn consists in the growth of the epithelium against the background of a wart, or senile keratosis. Provoking factors can be:

• traumatization of the skin;
• viral infection;
• excessive insolation;
• or lupus erythematosus.

Also among the reasons closely related to the appearance of a skin horn are viral infections, microtraumatization, hereditary predisposition and actinic damage to the epidermis.

Skin horn: varieties

Horny keratoma comes in two forms:

• primary;
• secondary.

Each form is characterized by its own characteristics that affect the course of treatment.

The development of the primary form of the skin horn occurs for no apparent reason on healthy skin. The course is benign, but this does not mean that the disease can be taken lightly.

The secondary form is preceded by inflammation, trauma, or neoplasm (, wart). This type of skin horn is more dangerous due to the possibility of degeneration into a malignant form.

Skin horn on the face photo

What does a cutaneous horn look like?

Outwardly, this neoplasm is a proliferation of keratinized skin masses of a dense consistency in the form of a cone of a yellowish or brownish hue. The growth of the "horn" is observed only in length up to several centimeters. The surface is smooth or furrowed. Perhaps inflammation of the skin around the horny keratoma, which may indicate a malignancy of the process. It is noteworthy that the diameter of the base of the neoplasm almost never changes.

According to the height of the neoplasm, it is possible to predict the disease:

• up to 1 cm - the development of the disease against the background or senile keratoma;
• more than 1 cm - the development of the disease as a result of keratoacanthoma, keratinized papilloma or seborrheic wart.

The disease usually manifests itself in one formation. The cutaneous horn on the face usually affects the cheeks. Also frequent on the ears and scalp. The rarest occurrence of keratoma horn is on the mucous membranes. The size of the keratinization in some cases can reach up to 30 cm in length.

Removal of the skin horn

Today, the removal of the skin horn is offered using the following procedures:

• surgical excision with suturing;
• cryodestruction (through cold);
• laser destruction (neodymium laser beams)

Despite the low percentage of malignancy of this type of neoplasm, in no case should you try to remove them yourself or let the treatment take its course.

The cutaneous horn is a dense keratin formation, more common on the face or body in older people over the age of 60-70 years. The tumor looks like a curved horn, the length of which varies from a few millimeters to several centimeters. On the face, head and body parts irradiated with ultraviolet light, a skin horn appears more often.

The reasons

The localization of dense pineal formations on more sun-exposed skin has allowed some researchers to talk about the decisive influence of insolation. But the exact cause of the appearance of keratin growths of impressive size has not yet been established. The medical literature describes cases when a skin horn formed on burn scars.

Symptoms

Other signs of the disease, in addition to the growth of a cone-shaped bump on the face, head or body, are rarely detected. Among the tumors united by the term "skin horn", benign ones predominate, but they can be precancerous and malignant. Approximately forty percent is such a type of lesions as keratosis. This is the name given to the excessive production of a special protein that forms the basis of the fibers that give strength to the skin.

Part of the skin horn from the base and up to about 1/2-2/3 of the height is formed by hard keratin. The growths usually acquire a yellow-brown color, they can be pearly white, gray, pink, red. The skin horn, the photo of which is presented in the article, is surrounded by normal skin. The epidermal cover in the place where the growth is located may be thickened.

Diagnostics

In order to find out the nature of the neoplasm, a biopsy is performed. These are laboratory tests that help distinguish a benign skin tumor from a malignant one. Doctors can prescribe tests before or after traditional surgery, curettage, electrocoagulation. The laser completely burns out the tissues of the tumors, therefore, after the removal of the formation, it is impossible to conduct a study of the nature of its appearance.

Radiosurgery is a modern method of skin horn treatment

Various growths on the face and body in polyclinics and cosmetology clinics are removed using the Surgitron apparatus. Its action is based on the evaporation of cells in the composition of the affected tissues with the help of repeated point impacts of the electrode.

When treated with a radioknife, layer-by-layer evaporation of skin formations occurs. A feature of the Surgitron device is the possibility of using electrocurettage and electrocoagulation modes, when necessary.

Advantages of the radiosurgical removal method for patients who have a cutaneous horn on the face:

• low chance of relapse;
• rapid epithelialization of the skin;
• decent cosmetic result.

Curettage and electrocoagulation

Doctors call this method of removing the skin horn the "method of choice" in the treatment of keratin growths from 0.5 to 2 cm in diameter. Local anesthesia is performed first. Doctors use sharp dermal curettes to scrape, and then treat the bottom and edges of the removed tumor with an electrocoagulator. After a cycle of 2-3 treatments, an antibacterial ointment and a bandage are applied to the wound. Features of curettage and electrocoagulation:

• a high percentage of repeated relapses (about 47% of all cases);
• formation of keloid scars (20% of cases);
• the method is not used in patients with pacemakers;
• removal method is not suitable for large tumors.

Cutaneous horn: cold treatment

Modern cryosurgeons use various cooling agents to influence the affected area. If liquid nitrogen is applied with a cotton swab, swab on papillomas, warts and other skin formations, then the skin temperature drops to -20 ° C. Such exposure causes the destruction of proteins, but collagen is less susceptible to cold. To get rid of the skin horn, including malignant degeneration of cells and tissues, a temperature below -50 °C is required. Such conditions make it possible to create a few known cryogenic substances. There are a number of requirements that they must meet.

The removal of the skin horn is carried out with available substances that freeze the affected tissues, are relatively safe for humans. Destruction by cold contributes to the death and removal of growth from the face or body. Cryogens and the temperature they create on the skin surface (°C):

1. Liquid nitrogen N 2 when applied with a probe (-196).
2. Liquid nitrogen N 2 in the form of a spray (-180).
3. Solid carbon dioxide or dry ice CO 2 (-79).
4. Nitric oxide or NO monoxide (-75).
5. Dimethyl ether in propane as part of the Cryopharm aerosol (-56).

Side effects of cryosurgery

When freezing and then thawing a skin area, a person feels pain. Removal of a skin growth is most often carried out during several sessions. If the neoplasm is small, then the pain is tolerable. When using cryodestruction of large growths, local anesthesia is performed.

When a skin growth is removed from thin, sensitive skin, swelling occurs. This often happens when the area around the eyes and lips is treated with a cryogen. In order to remove these side effects, hormonal ointments and other medications with steroids are used.

The formation of blisters with bloody contents is another unpleasant consequence of freezing. The treatment consists in the fact that the medical staff opens the bubble, then a dry bandage is applied to the affected area.

Among the side effects of cryodestruction are hypo- and hyperpigmentation (whitening and darkening of the skin). One way to prevent these unpleasant consequences is to use cream and clothing that protect against ultraviolet radiation on sunny days. The skin should also be protected from exposure to aggressive chemicals.

In areas of the face and body treated with cryogens at temperatures below -50 ° C, the death of hair follicles occurs. Patients need to think about this when choosing a method to eliminate tumors on the scalp, mustache, beard and sideburns.

Skin horn prevention

If a skin horn grows on the face or body, it is necessary to visit a dermatologist to make sure that there is or is not a precancerous condition, a malignant degeneration. Various therapeutic methods help prevent skin cancer, recurrence of the disease.

It is necessary to use medicines that will help stimulate the immune system. Chemotherapy and other methods allow you to eliminate the skin horn gradually. The use of creams, ointments with a keratolytic effect can in the future lead to getting rid of this cosmetic problem.

At the slightest sign of excessive accumulation of keratin, it is necessary to reduce exposure to bright sun. Every person should protect exposed skin from ultraviolet rays. All you need to do is apply sunscreen before going outside on a hot day.