Pre-operative care in dermatologic surgery is aimed at preventing complications intra-and post-operatively. The clinical history will determine the need for additional tests for prophylaxis of bacterial endocarditis, infection at the surgical site, and valvular and orthopedic prostheses. Diabetes mellitus and systemic arterial hypertension should be under control. Warfarin (keeping the INR within the therapeutic range) and acetylsalicylic acid (for secondary prevention of cardiovascular events) should be maintained. Other drugs should be evaluated. Monopolar electrosurgery should be avoided in patients using implantable electronic devices.

Keywords: PREOPERATIVE CARE; ANTIBIOTIC PROPHYLAXIS; ANTICOAGULANTS; ELECTROSURGERY.

INTRODUCTION: Basal cell carcinoma is the most common non-melanoma malignancy in humans. Its superficial variant has specificities that can represent a diagnostic and therapeutic challenge.
OBJECTIVE: To describe the epidemiological profile of patients with superficial basal cell carcinoma (SBCC) treated at a reference service and to correlate, statistically, clinical, dermoscopic, and anatomopathological characteristics.
METHODS: Observational, analytical, cross-sectional study conducted by collecting data from patients with suspected SBCC between November 2019 and October 2020.
RESULTS: In total, we confirmed 25 lesions as SBCC. They were more frequent in women, in the head and neck, and with a diameter of less than 1 cm. We also observed, in clinical characteristics, a predominance of individuals over 60 years old and with phototypes II and III. The anatomopathological examination observed some pigmentation in the lesions evaluated and a predominance of intra-epidermal keratinocytes in lesions with maple leaf-like areas in dermoscopy.
CONCLUSIONS: SBCC can present clinically as a pigmented lesion, affecting more the head and neck regions. Lighter skin phototypes are more likely to have SBCC with pigmented dermoscopic structures. Intra-epidermal keratinocytes possibly correlate with the formation of maple leaf structures.

Keywords: Basal cell carcinoma; Dermoscopy; Epidemiology; Skin Neoplasms; Pathology