Report of the experience of small procedures in dermatology at University Hospital

Abstract

Study design: Cohort study. Objectives: To report the experience of the Small Procedures Division, Dermatology Department, at Gaffrée and Guinle University Hospital, including a description of diagnoses, types of treatment, and efficacy. Methods: This is a prospective, observational study that consisted of data compilation of patients referred from the primary Family Health Program, Local Health Department, to an University Hospital for the performance of small dermatological procedures, encompassing a period of 31 weeks. Results: Overall, 884 patients underwent procedures. Benign lesions comprised 77.5% of the clinical diagnoses, while malignant lesions constituted 22.5%. The most frequent diagnoses were cyst (133) and basal cell carcinoma (128). The most commonly performed procedures were simple excision and suture (337) and lesion removal through shaving plus electrocoagulation (161). 98.3% of the procedures consisted of basic dermatological surgeries and 1.7% of the cases required advanced procedures. In addition, 90.8% of the patients were operated on the first day of care, on the other hand 3.7% were referred to other surgical specialties. Conclusion: A Dermatologic Surgery Department structured to perform small outpatient procedures provides efficacious care to the vast majority of referred patients.