Search Results Category: Uncategorized

Keloid Scars – Why Darker Skin is a Definite Candidate for Keloid Scar Treatment

December 9, 2009 at 3:58 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

A Keloid scar treatment is especially tricky for people with darker skin. Darkly pigmented people are exceptionally prone to forming keloids.  Some ethnic groups are at more risk of developing them. You are 16% more susceptible if you are African-American or Hispanic.

  • A keloid is  “scar tissue that won’t stop growing”. It is often not a candidate for surgical removal, or dermabrasion, because those treatments also leave a scar, and it may be a keloid.
  • There is a real risk the skin that grows back after keloid scar removal will be bigger, bolder keloid tissue.

Keloids on dark skin appear pink or red.  They stand out on dark skin.

People of color are particularly in search of a keloid scar removal that fades the color of the out-of-control scar tissue.

With medical options discouraged by doctors, silicone keloid scar treatment makes sense for darker skin. Silicone promotes fading over time.

Research proves silicone reduces keloid scars.

A major medical center in India performed a controlled study of silicone scar treatment creams and gels. They concluded it may be the least expensive, effective option for poor third world countries. The research was done in India because dark South Asian skin is prone to keloids.

Hypertrophic Scars – How to Take Early Action to Combat Hypertrophic Scars

December 9, 2009 at 3:49 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

A hypertrophic scar is a red mass of scar tissue. It piles up above the skin surface, although it is the size of the original wound. Hypertrophic scars are becoming more common. Skin piercing is the reason. People may not know they are prone to hypertrophic scars until they remove a piercing. It heals. A prominent scar results.

Early hypertrophic scar treatment is essential. It can begin as soon as the wound closes. Silicone scar therapy is recommended by doctors.

Researchers know the areas of the body most vulnerable to hypertrophic scars.

  • Shoulders and chests.
  • Earlobes and cheeks.
  • Three of the four most risky areas of skin are frequently pierced: ears, cheeks, and chest (piercing at the nipples).

Researchers documented those most at risk of forming hypertrophic scars.

  • People younger than 30
  • People with so-called high risk trauma.
  • They found men and women are at equal risk.

Research resulted in dramatic evidence that silicone gels work to reduce scarring.

  • Decreased the size  in 53% of test patients.
  • Reduced  tenderness in 36%.
  • Stopped itching in 45%.
  • Softened scar tissue for 45% of test subjects.

Old Scars – New Hope for Fading Old Scars

December 9, 2009 at 3:29 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

You may have trusted what your doctor predicted. He said scars fade naturally over time. Yours didn’t. Now what?

You ask your doctor. He talks about something called “scar revision”. This means more surgery, to correct the old scar from the first surgery. ALL cuts scar. No one can predict how much. After expensive, painful “revision” on that old scar you could end up with a new scar that looks as bad or worse.

Try an at-home scar treatment first on that old scar. Silicone works best.

It’s because silicone impacts the tough fibers of scars. A major study may prove that static electricity breaks up scar tissue. Silicone attracts static electricity.

Silicone fades scar color. A major study of silicone on scars found impressive results.

  • Doctors documented improvement in 50% of cases. Improvement included fading .
  • Improvement appeared within a span of three to six months.

A faded scar looks smaller.  A smaller scar diminishes the attention to the color.

Don’t think older scars are hopeless.

Plastic Surgery Scars – How You Can Help Diminish Plastic Surgery Scars.

December 9, 2009 at 3:13 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

Plastic surgeons attempt to hide scars at the hairline and behind ears. But every wound leaves a scar. Some people love to spot plastic surgery scars.

A scar will look worse before it looks better unless you use a scar treatment. Left alone, it can look red, and appear raised for up to one year. It is certain to look that way for the first two to four months.

Most plastic surgeons will wait one year before thinking about a scar revision surgery. This is troubling to people whose scars can be seen in public. They want to do something immediately.

Scar Therapy Helps Fading

  • Reducing color can make a mark look smaller.
  • Scar fading gives the appearance of a flatter scar.
  • A medical study of silicone gel found one in three people experienced scar fading

Doctors acknowledge over-the-counter scar treatment is often sufficient

Once a year has passed, plastic surgeons may go to work on scar removal. Often they use a scar cream in conjunction with their techniques. This is because of the healing benefits of silicone. You may find  at-home use of scar cream eliminates the need for costly medical techniques.

  • Silicone scar treatment can help reduce the appearance of some scars.
  • No scar can be completely erased.
  • Silicone-based products are frequently used alongside laser scar treatment, collagen  injections, and dermabrasion.

Surgery Scars – What the Doctor May Not Tell You About Surgery Scars

December 9, 2009 at 2:58 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

The doctor may not tell you this. No one can predict the size, shape or permanent color of surgery scars, because we all heal differently. In fact, surgeons tend to be egotistical about their stitching technique.

He or she may use the term “minimal scarring.” But there is more you can do to minimize surgery scars. Take take quick scar treatment action on your own.

Why is Quick Action Essential?

  1. New tissue is forming even before a wound closes.
    1. Wounds bind by growing tough connective fibers. They weave themselves together to pull edges of skin closed.
    2. To affect scarring, therapy must begin quickly. The inter-weaving of connective cells begins immediately.

Note: Very gentle massage incorporating silicone scar treatment can help. It breaks up tough tissue before it heaps up and leaves a disfiguring reminder of an incision.

  1. Scars need soothing early on.
    1. They itch. Scratching is a bad idea when an incision is healing.
    2. They are swollen and hurt.
    3. Irritants such as wind can be especially painful.

Note: Silicone scar treatments can be especially soothing. It also promotes healing, which cuts the length of time the scar hurts.

3.  Any skin injury requires protection.

  1. The danger is infection, which is debilitating and may require re-opening the wound.
  2. Infection slows or stops the healing process. Slow healing increases fibre growth.
  3. Regenerating cells are sensitive to bumping, and even air moving across the wound.

Burn Scars – A 50% Chance of Serious Scars from Burns, Even From Less Serious Burns

December 9, 2009 at 2:41 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

The more serious the  burn the greater the scarring.  One new study finds half of all serious burns develop hypertrophic scars (tough, fibrous, reddened tissue).

For example, a simple cigarette burn is  serious injury. It’s because the intense heat of red-hot tobacco sears deep into the skin layers.  Burns begin to heal from the bottom. When the damaged tissue is deep, there is more chance the burn scar tissue will pile up. A  hypertrophic scar piles up above the skin level.  Burn scar treatment should begin early.

There is another reason a simple home burn can become hypertrophic is infection. We tend to forget smaller burn scars once they stop hurting. But it takes up to three weeks for a burn to heal over. It is susceptible to infection all of that time. Infection slows healing. The slower the healing the more scar tissue will pile up.

Other examples of burn scars to consider serious are kitchen burns, campfire burns, motorcycle exhaust burns on the leg, and burn from outdoor barbecue mishaps.

Advice:  keep the wound covered. Scar therapy helps. A silicone scar gel applied once the wound has closed will retain moisture, which reduces scarring. Silicone is also effective at discouraging tough scar fibres.

Keloid Scar Removal – Do I Have a Keloid or Some Other Kind of Scar?

December 1, 2009 at 6:07 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

The two most serious kinds of scarring are keloids and hypertrophic scars.

Keloids are raised, reddish and painful. They can be very large and disfiguring. A scar is made of gristle-like fibers  to hold the wound closed. With keloids, fibres continue to multiply even after the wound is filled in. Keloids form large mounds of scar tissue.

A hypertrophic scar is more common. They don’t get a big as keloids, often remaining no larger than the original wound. They are more likely to fade over time. They occur in all racial groups. Bad acne scarring or a pronounced scar from skin piercing can be hypertrophic, but not keloid.

Operating on a keloid usually stimulates more scar tissue to form, so people with keloids may have been told that there is nothing that can be done to get rid of them. A Keloid scar treatment would then involve topical silicone cream to fade and reduce the size and appearance of the scar.

Both keloids and hypertrophic scars respond to topical scar treatments.

Keloid Scar Treatments – How Do You Know You Have a Keloid?

December 1, 2009 at 5:54 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

What are the signs and symptoms of a keloid?

Keloids are raised and look shiny and dome-shaped. The color makes them stand out on normal skin; color ranges from pink to red. Some keloids become quite large and unsightly. Aside from causing potential cosmetic problems, these dangerously fertile scars tend to itch, are tender and even painful to the touch. The larger they are, the more debilitating they can be.

When Should I Get a Doctor Involved?

If you have been under medical care for a surgical or serious traumatic wound, your doctor should be monitoring the healing process anyway. He will identify keloidal growth.  You may just have noticed an angry-looking scar.

But if you are among the one in ten people for whom even the smallest skin piercing or burn develops keloid scar tissue, you will spot the differences yourself. If the size is manageable, a home keloid scar treatment can be effective in inhibiting, fading, and shrinking the bothersome keloid without requiring a doctor consultation.

Scar Cream – Five Reasons Scar Tissue is So Different from Normal Skin

December 1, 2009 at 5:39 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

The skin that grows as a wound heals is very different from the skin it replaces.

  1. Scar tissue has no sweat glands.
  2. There are no hair follicles in scarred skin.
  3. Scars are less resistant to sunlight. UV rays change the color of scars.
  4. The tissue is thicker and fibrous.
  5. The pigment is different: either lighter than surrounding skin, or a different color.

Can You Impact Those Differences?

  • There is nothing to be done about the first two differences in scar tissue. Scars are simply inferior quality skin.
  • You can use an SPF 30 on a scar, if you go in the sun at all. A day of UV rays can erase months of scar fading treatment.
  • The last two can be influenced by a scar treatment. Surgery removes thicker tissue, shots can reduce fibres below the skin. Silicone encourages size reduction, and promotes color fading over time.

Scar Cream – Four Ways to Get a Head Start on Scar Treatment

December 1, 2009 at 5:21 pm Filed in:Uncategorized No Comments

Many doctors advise getting started on home scar therapy as soon as a wound is no longer open.

  1. Silicone scar cream or gel is one of the few products proven to help improve scars. Use it consistently for the first two months at least. The longer, the better.
  2. Massage the scar for 5 minutes, 3 times a day until it is soft and flat.  This may take a few months. Scar cream, used as a massage ointment, can double the effectiveness of this self-therapy.
  3. Keep the wound moist.  Scar creams made of silicone promote moisture. A moist wound scars less.
  4. Protect against infection.  An infected wound is slow to heal, increasing scarring. Scar creams form a defensive barrier against infection.

Your surgeon won’t touch a scar for many months.  A head start on treatment is recommended.