Surgical Procedures
Our doctors and nurses provide high quality care for you in your surgery process and are skilled in performing minor surgery and procedures.
All equipment used is sterilised by our professional and the trained team of doctors and nurses. Our staff are equipped to administer local or general anaesthetic during the procedure and offers patients a relaxing room to recover in when they have completed their procedure. We strive on making sure you and your loved ones feel comfortable during any surgical procedure and will assist you in your road to recovery.
The length of healing or the types of medications and treatment methods will vary depending upon the type of surgical procedure you undergo, the location of the surgery and your lifestyle factors.
If you have any questions regarding your surgical procedure or would like to discuss your health, please contact your health care professional.
Tongue Tie Release
Tongue tie is a condition that is present at birth. This condition restricts the movement of the tongue and affects oral hygiene, eating, speech and swallowing.
When a child has tongue tie they can have
Difficulty sticking their tongue out
A misshapen, notched or heart shaped tongue
Trouble moving their tongue from side to side
When extended, their tongue may look flat or square shaped
Tongue tie can also make it difficult to breast feed, as, the baby can lose suction, make clicking sounds while feeding, cause compression or stripes to the skin, damage or pain to nipples. Tongue tie can also cause the baby’s weight to decrease as they are unable to latch properly.
It is important that babies have Vitamin K before the tongue tie release is considered and it is preferred that your baby refrains from feeding at least one hour before the procedure.
The release of the tongue tie involves the health professional placing their finger and thumb underneath the baby’s tongue to access the frenulum or “tongue web”. The health professional will then release the frenulum with a small pair of sterile scissors. It is encouraged that the baby is breast feed straight away after the procedure.
If you have any concerns regarding your child’s health or for more information on after care, the procedure or other concerns please contact your health provider.
Excision of Skin Lesions
A skin lesion occurs when an area of the skin differs from the rest of the skin. This can mean a lump, bump, sore or any area of the skin which is different to the surrounding skin. Skin lesion removal is a very simple procedure that is usually performed within the doctor’s office, however, in some cases you may be required to see a primary care advisor, dermatologist or surgeon, depending upon the seriousness of the skin lesion. The type of procedure and the after care will depend upon the size, location, appearance and type of lesion that the patient is suffering from. Many procedures result in a sample of the lesion being sent to the lab where is undergoes further testing to determine whether further treatment is needed or not.
The techniques the health provider will use to extract the skin lesion can involve
Simple Scissor Excision
This procedure is used for skin conditions that rise above skin level. The doctor or nurse will grab the skin lesion with small forceps and pull the skin in an upwards motion. Small scissors are then used to snip around and under the skin lesion. A curette (scraping device) is then sometimes used to cut any remaining parts of the lesion. This procedure rarely requires stitches and antiseptic medicines are applied to the area to prevent infections and bleeding.
Shave Excision
This procedure is used for lesions that rise beyond the skin surface. The health service provider uses a small razor like blade to extract the outer layers of the skin lesion after the area is made numb. All or part of the skin lesion is removed and sent for testing. This procedure rarely requires stitches and antiseptic medicines are applied to stop bleeding. The incision may also require burning with a cautery, but this will cause minimal to no pain for the patient.
Cryotherapy
Cryotherapy is when the tissue is “super” frozen in order to destroy it. This procedure is generally used to treat warts, solar keratoses, actinic keratoses and molluscum contagiosum.
The procedure is done using a cotton swab that has had liquid nitrogen placed upon it. This procedure is fast and generally takes a minute to perform. It may cause the patient some discomfort. Numbing medicines and other pain preventives are generally used to aid the patient and when the procedure is completed the treated area will blister and the treated lesion will fall away.
Full Thickness- Skin Excision
To remove skin lesions at a deeper skin level, the health professional will remove a small amount of tissue surrounding the lesion to be tested and to check if there is any possibility of cancer cells. This procedure is likely to be performed if there is a likelihood the patient has skin cancer. The shape of an eclipse is removed from the skin lesion, as, this makes the incision easier to close with stitches. If the entire lesion is to be removed, typically a margin of 3- 4mm surrounding the possible tumour will also be removed.
This procedure will require stitches and if the area is significantly large, a skin graft may be required.
Notice
The type of excision technique and the type of procedure to assess the skin condition will be at the discretion of the doctor and will differ depending on what is best for the patient.
If you notice any changes to the skin or suspect you have a skin lesion, it is important you contact us.