Correct Site Identification Can Be Challenging During Cutaneous Surgery

Background: Identifying the correct surgical site for cutaneous surgery is crucial but can be challenging. Objective: To determine the incidence of site identification problems and characterize the strategies used to resolve them. Design: Nationwide, prospective, multicenter cohort study. Methods: Nonmelanoma skin cancer cases where there was uncertainty regarding the tumor site were included. Results: Of 17,076 cases evaluated, 98 (0.60%) were lesions in question for which site identification was initially uncertain. Using 5 different approaches, ambiguity of the surgical site was resolved in 82% of cases and surgery was performed. Older male patients and lesions located in nonfacial areas were more likely to have questionable lesion sites. Of 98 ambiguous lesions, >60% were in patients who were unable to identify the lesion site. Surgeons most relied on the anatomic site location of the biopsy, patient self-identification of site, and a high-quality photograph when there was site a more...