Staged surgical excision superior for treatment of lentigo maligna

(HealthDay)—For patients with lentigo maligna, staged surgical excision is associated with a low rate of recurrence, according to research published online Nov. 30 in the British Journal of Dermatology.

Noting that local excision of lentigo maligna with a margin of 5 mm has recurrence rates ranging from 6 to 20 percent, K. de Vries, from the University Medical Center Groningen in the Netherlands, and colleagues determined the recurrence rate after staged surgical excision. Data were retrieved from 100 patients treated with staged survival excision between 2002 and 2011.

The researchers found that the treatment resulted in 100 percent immuno-histopathological control of lateral margins. During the several stages of surgery, digital pictures were used to facilitate orientation. Four patients had a recurrence after a mean follow-up of 60 months, with recurrence after 37, 58, 74, and 77 months of follow-up.

"Staged surgical excision is superior in clearance and recurrence rate to wide local excision for lentigo maligna and should be considered as treatment of first choice in national and international guidelines," the authors write.

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