Three certainties.

• Once a scar forms it cannot be erased.
• It can be improved with a scar reducer, but a trace will always remain.
• Surgery to treat a plastic surgery scar will leave a new one.

Plastic Surgery Scar Characteristics Vary.

1. Liposuction “holes” depend on the size of the instrument. Fat is especially prone to scarring.
2. A full tummy-tuck incision runs from hip to hip, low enough for underwear to cover but noticeable in swimwear and intimate situations.
3. Nose jobs leave a fine-line. Facelift wounds are positioned to blend in. Eyelid skin is so thin keloids may appear.
4. Breast enlargement or reduction scars respond especially well to silicone therapy, available in scar reducer home treatments.

An irony of cosmetic surgery is that afterward, doctors often prescribe scar removal called “revision”; that is, more plastic surgery to treat color and size.

Topical Silicone Scar Removal Products Have Been Tested

• In a controlled study at major South Florida medical center.
• In a serious analysis by doctors in Pune, India
• Both studies found silicone in gel form reduced the size of scars for more than half of their test patients.

Why would a doctor recommend a scar removal cream over medical treatment?

• You are prone to forming serious scarring, such as keloids and hypertrophic scars.
• You have a family history of bad scarring.
• You are a person of color. Dark skin scars more noticeably.
• You can’t afford it and insurance won’t cover it.

Research also determined silicone reduces scar tenderness, stops itching, and softens scar tissue, which helps flatten a scar.

Scar Wars: Learning just a little about what causes scarring leads to improved scar treatment.

At Stanford University, a group dubbed the “scar wars team” moved a step forward in understanding scar formation.

• They demonstrated that pulling, pushing or stretching wounded skin increases scarring.
• The doctors believe that if they control pressure on skin as it heals, they will control scar formation.
• The researchers think engineering a change in physical forces around wounds could eliminate scarring.

Previous research into the “environment” of a wound indicated that applying a silicone scar treatment to a wound within two weeks of treatment encourages faster healing by encouraging moisture retention.

• If your scar causes physical difficulty you may be able to get insurance to pay for scar treatment.
• Insurance companies routinely deny coverage for plastic surgery scars or complications from plastic surgery.

How to Get Insurance Approval

• Ask your doctor to write a letter detailing your particular case, such as if you are a burn victim.
• Ask you doctor to take photos to help prove your case.

The overwhelming lack of insurance coverage for scar treatment makes silicone-based scar products one of the few affordable options.  Silicone has been proven to promote healing and reduce scar size and color.