Quick Facts: Seborrheic Keratoses - Merck Manuals Consumer Version

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What are seborrheic keratoses?

What causes seborrheic keratoses?

What do seborrheic keratoses look like?

How do doctors treat seborrheic keratoses?

Noncancerous Skin Growths

Pulmonary-renal syndrome affects both the lungs and kidneys. This disorder causes bleeding into the lungs (diffuse alveolar hemorrhage) along with damage to the microscopic blood vessels in the kidney (glomerulonephritis). Which of the following is almost always the cause of this syndrome?

An autoimmune disorder (a condition in which the body mistakenly attacks its own tissues)
A genetic abnormality
An injury to the lung and/or kidney
Severe, chronic hypertension (high blood pressure)

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Last full review/revision May 2020| Content last modified May 2020

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Seborrheic Keratosis

Seborrheic keratoses are tan, beige, brown, or black growths on the skin that can look like big warts.

Seborrheic keratoses are harmless growths that are common among middle-aged and older people
They aren't cancerous and don’t become cancerous
Sometimes they itch a little, but they don't hurt
If they bother you, the doctor can remove them by freezing or using an electric needle

Some people get many growths.

Doctors don’t know what causes seborrheic keratoses, but they run in families.

Seborrheic keratoses:

Are round or oval-shaped
Are tan, beige, brown, or black
Look like they’re stuck on the skin
Usually feel waxy, scaly, or wart-like
Show up anywhere on the body, but most often on the temples, chest, back, and belly

Darker-skinned people sometimes get a large number of growths on their cheeks, along the cheekbone.

Dark brown seborrheic keratoses may be mistaken for moles or a skin cancer called melanoma.

Seborrheic keratoses don’t need treatment.

If they get irritated, itchy, or you don’t like how they look, doctors can remove them:

By freezing them with liquid nitrogen
Using an electric needle

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Pyogenic Granulomas

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Skin Cysts

Seborrheic Keratoses

Overview of Skin Growths

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