Can a Doctor Confirm a Lipoma by Just Touch?

Question

I have several plump up on my back.My doctor touched it and said it was a lipoma. Can a doctor confirm a lipoma by just touch? Do I need any further inspection?

Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS · Answer

Lipomas are benign fatty tumors that occur under the skin and less commonly within the muscle. They are associated with mild discomfort and a lump underneath the skin. It is always best to talk to an expert plastic surgeon to determine whether the lipoma is possibly a cyst or a tumor or hernia. We would have to remove the lipoma to be sure that it is not something else and we usually do this by sending it to a pathologist for evaluation. If a lipoma is painful, then an exam is needed to make sure it is not compressing on a nerve or whether the diagnosis is different. Aftercare for a lipoma includes gentle compression and Plato’s Scar Serum twice daily on the wound.

Best,
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

Best, 
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon

Jennifer Lauren Crawford, MD · Answer

For the most part, lipomas have a very specific look and feel on exam and most surgeons and even primary care doctors feel comfortable making the likely diagnosis based on exam. Some patients seem to be little lipoma factories and there are inherited syndromes that can lead people to develop a multitude of them. They very rarely turn into anything serious. So, most of the time, I remove them if they are painful, getting large, functional in the way, or cause great anxiety for the patient. They can always be sent for pathology to confirm the diagnosis.

Edwin C. Pound, III, MD · Answer

Lipomas can range from very small to massive, and they can appear anywhere on the body. Most experienced doctors can diagnose a lipoma with high probability by feel alone. Smaller lipomas can generally be removed under local anesthesia in an office setting. Larger lipomas or lipomas in difficult areas may require a trip to the operating room to remove.

Michael Constantin Gartner, DO · Answer

Most  lipomas that are superficial can be diagnosed by touch. Occasionally a more expensive test like a cat-scan may be necessary. I would recommend you seek a consultation with a board-certified plastic surgeon by the American Board of plastic surgery who has extensive experience in lipoma removal.Best RegardsDr. Gartner

Channing R. Barnett, MD · Answer

Most well-trained dermatologist can diagnose a lipoma by touch. They can occasionally be confused with other types of skin growths like sebaceous cysts. The good news is that lipomas are benign in nature. The best way to get a definitive diagnosis is by sampling it or removing it entirely and sending it to lab to be checked (biopsy).

Timothy Mountcastle, MD · Answer

most physicians can diagnose a lipoma by touch. palpation of most superficial lipomas are quite easy although sometimes they can be confused for certain types of cysts. But in general they can be easily diagnosed by physical exam.  occassionally an ultrasound  can aid in the diagnosis. they only 100 percent way to be certain however is by biopsy, either excising a piece or all of the mass.

	however, a mass felt to be a lipoma by physical exam and verification with ultrasound is near 99.9% correct in experienced hands.

	 

	Dr ruekl states it more succintly in tha the only way to know for sure is to take it out and send it to the lab.

F. Victor Rueckl, MD (in memoriam) · Answer

Lipomas are fatty tissue deposits. Most experienced dermatologists or dermatological surgeons can feel them and know if it's a lipoma or other fatty-type cyst just by touch. The only way to know for sure, though, is to take it out and send it to a lab.

Can a Doctor Confirm a Lipoma by Just Touch?

Answers (7)

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