What should you know about electro surgical diathermy?

A clinician uses a handpiece connected to an electrosurgical unit. Depending on the setting and the problem being treated, the energy may remove a small growth, destroy superficial tissue, or help control bleeding. The area is usually cleaned and numbed first. You may notice pressure, warmth, or a brief smell from heated tissue, but the experience varies with the site and the size of the treatment area.

The method can be used for selected lesions and some viral growths, including genital warts, but a diagnosis comes before treatment. It is not a way to identify an unfamiliar bump.

Tell the clinician about pacemakers or implanted electrical devices, medicines that affect bleeding, allergies to local anaesthetic, diabetes, immune problems, and any tendency to form raised scars. Follow the wound-care plan: keep the area clean, avoid picking the surface, and protect it from friction while it heals. Use only the dressings or medicines recommended for that site.

Contact the treating clinic if pain, redness, swelling, warmth, or drainage is increasing rather than settling, or if the wound opens. Seek prompt medical care for heavy bleeding, fever, spreading redness, or feeling faint. A changing, bleeding, or repeatedly irritated growth also needs assessment rather than repeat treatment at home.

Ask what the lesion is thought to be, why diathermy suits its location, how the wound will be dressed, and whether tissue should be sent for examination. Clarify expected healing, activity restrictions, pigment changes, scarring, and what to do if the growth returns.