Possible to damage nerve in mole excision

[ecj]

I recently had a small mole removed from my forearm.  The results showed that I needed an excision of the area because the mole was atypical.
During the excision, although, my arm was numb, I could feel a pinch as the doctor went deeper. She then numbed the area more.  Now, six days later, my arm, from my hand to just above elbow area, is very sore and feels very painful, almost like I just lifted very heavy weights.
Could it be possible that my nerves in my forearm were damaged by this procedure?

If so, will it heal on it's own?

[Alan Rockoff, MD]

It seems most unlikely that a mole removal resulted in nerve damage, since moles aren't deep enough for that to happen.  Sometimes after extensive cancer surgery on the face there can be nerve damage, but even that often improves over time.  I suspect hat our symptoms are just from the inflammation following surgery, and that they will go away on their own.  You need to check this with the doctor who did the surgery, however.  Call tomorrow.  Your doctor should be notified at once of anything that even could be related to the procdure.

Best.

Dr. Rockoff