Keloid Scars

What Are Keloid Scars?

Keloid scars occur when collagen builds up from too much production of fibrous tissue at the site of an injury. This can be caused by burns, cuts, scrapes, surgery, and superficial body piercings. These types of scars are very pronounced, appearing bumpy and red or pink in color. They can also move outside the wound boundaries and cause pain and itching.

Keloid Or Hypertrophic Scars?

Sometimes it can be hard to tell the difference between keloid and hypertrophic scars. It is important to understand the difference because the treatment for each is very different. Knowing exactly whether a scar is hypertrophic or keloid will help you find the best treatment to help clear up your scars. Most injuries leave just a flat scar that is very light in color. When a scar is hypertrophic, it appears very red and thickened. These scars can take up to a year to heal. Because this healing process takes so long, doctors can inject steroids into the scar to help reduce the inflammation that causes them to grow and appear redder. Hypertrophic scars, unlike keloids, usually remain within the boundaries of the original wound.

Keloid scars tend to form after the normal scar at the site and time of injury and continue to grow larger. Keloids can be caused by piercings, injuries, burns and surgery. Picking at pimples can also cause keloid scars. They tend to be ugly in appearance and take on a reddish-pink color. They rise above the skin and feel like rubber. They can also grow beyond the borders of the original wound. People with keloids often complain of itching and pain. You will usually see keloids on the earlobes, shoulders, chest and back.

Tendencies to Develop Keloid Scars

The reasons behind the tendency to develop keloid scars are not completely known. Several studies show there may be a defect in the immune system response that causes it to overreact to wounds.

Anyone can develop keloid scars, but they tend to occur in higher numbers among those with dark skin. Women are also more prone to keloid scars.

How to Prevent Keloid Scars

Preventing the occurrence of keloid scars begins with trying to prevent skin injury. If you have a tendency to develop keloid scarring, avoid surgeries of cosmetic nature or unnecessary body piercings. Also try to prevent injuring the skin as much as possible.

If the skin does receive an injury, place pressure on the wound right away to stop any bleeding. When a wound bleeds, the body will immediately begin sending collagen to the wound to help it close. Applying pressure will help that process along faster. Then flush the wound with cool water and wash it with gentle soap to get rid of any dirt. The wound must be kept clean, dry, and bandaged to prevent bacteria from getting in and causing infection. The most effective wound covering is a silicone gel that forms a moisture barrier on the skin and keeps moisture in and bacteria out.

Natural Scar Treatments

Natural Scar Treatment Options

Scars can affect many types of skin differently. No matter what type of scar you suffer from, you probably want to look into scar treatment. Scars may only cover one small area, or they may cover a large part of your body. Treating scars can reduce their appearance and bring back your self-confidence. While there are a variety of all-natural and safe products to help fade scars and heal the skin, not every scar removal product is appropriate for every skin type. You can learn about all of the different products to find the one best suited for your skin type. With natural treatments, you may be able to begin treating scars with things you already have in your home. Most of these remedies have potentially no side effects and can be very cost effective. Here is a list of natural home remedies:

Gels and Liquids

Aloe Vera Gel – Using aloe vera gel can help lighten scars and reduce their appearance. It comes from the aloe vera plant, and you can just break off a leaf and apply the gel directly to acne scars. Make sure to wash off and use a good moisturizer.

Honey – Honey has been used for thousands of years as a skin tonic. It can provide nutrients to help feed the skin and can also lock in moisture. Dab a bit of honey onto acne scars to help fade them.

Lemon Juice – The citric acid can help to lighten the appearance of scars.

Healthy doses of vitamin C from lemon juice help nourish and heal the skin. Lemon juice contains alpha hydroxy acid that can help remove dead skin cells. After using lemon juice, make sure to wash your face thoroughly and apply a good moisturizer.

Natural Pastes and Oils

Cucumber Paste – Take cucumber and grind it into a paste. Spread over acne scars to help reduce redness and inflammation. Cucumber helps moisturize the skin and speed up healing.

Almond Oil – Almond oil is very nourishing to the skin and can help the skin regenerate healthy tissue naturally. Make sure that you are not allergic to tree nuts before using it.

Olive Oil – Olive oil is very moisturizing to the skin and can be used after the above treatments to help lock in moisture and promote healing.

Make sure you use cold-pressed olive oil for the best results.

Natural Scar Treatment Tips

Try massaging the area of acne scars to keep adhesions from forming in the scar tissue. Gentle massages can keep scars from growing thicker. They can also promote blood flow to the area to help with healthy tissue regeneration.

Before you use any of the treatments above, always do a “spot check” to make sure your skin does not react badly to any of the treatments. Never leave lemon juice on your skin for more than 15 to 20 minutes and always moisturize after using.

Exfoliate your skin at least once a week with a scrub. You can try adding brown sugar to your honey to make a paste and scrub the skin. This will help remove dead skin cells. Never exfoliate more than twice weekly and always moisturize after exfoliation.

Preventive Care

Preventive Care to Keep Nasty Scars away

Skin is your body’s main form of protection from invaders and damage. When you get a scar, your body is sealing up to protect your insides. Scars are the natural buildup of fibrous tissue formed from collagen. Collagen is released as soon as an injury occurs and the body works to close up the open area. Scars are unsightly and can be uncomfortable. The best way to prevent scars is to take action as soon as possible after an injury. Preventive care only takes a little time, and the benefits are worth it!

Taking care of wounds properly is the first and most important part of preventive care. Keep the wound clean and dry. Flush new wounds with water, and make sure all dirt is removed from the wound bed. Clean daily with mild soap and water. Keep a sterile bandage over the wound to keep it clean.

You can use an antibacterial cream to prevent infection. After the wound closes, begin to apply a silicone-based gel to lock in moisture and encourage healthy tissue regeneration. Your body will send a constant stream of white blood cells to the area for quite some time. This causes the first fibrous tissue in the wound bed and shows up as a scab. They don’t look very good and can be itchy. Make sure you don’t pick at scabs, as this will cause more fibrous tissue to form and make the scar appear worse. This can also cause an infection in the skin.

Preventive Care For Different Types Of Scars

Scars are a natural part of healing even with small injuries. Every scar is different in size and the way they look. How you scar depends on your ethnic background, genetics, age, and health and where the injury is. Whatever the type of scar, it is important to start treatment right away to prevent it from getting out of control and to help the skin heal properly.

Some scars are very small, flat, and light in color. These can be covered, and treatment is very effective in reducing these minor scars. Other scars can be very red, raised, and possibly larger than the wound bed. These are known as either hypertrophic or keloid scars. They can be itchy and painful. Preventive care for these types of scars includes protecting the skin from any injury. Avoid piercings, and if you need surgery, let your surgeon know that you are at risk for keloid scars. If you do receive an injury, avoid any heavy lifting, exercise and strain on the skin areas.

No matter what type of injury you sustain, there is never a guarantee that you won’t receive a lasting scar. The best preventive care is to protect your skin and begin wound care immediately after an injury.

Scar Reduction

Scar reduction aims at preventing scars from becoming worse. Use a good sunscreen when going out in the sun to prevent discoloration to the scar tissue. Since scar tissue is a different color than the skin, tanning will make it stand out. Sunburns can also make scars look worse and increase the scar tissue when the sunburn heals.

You will also want to look into the numerous scar creams available that contain nutrients that can nourish scarred skin. Look for ingredients like cocoa butter, vitamin E, and aloe vera. Make sure scar creams do not contain a lot of water that dilutes the important ingredients. You can also try to cover the scar with a silicone gel sheet to lock in moisture during the healing process. Silicone products can reduce the redness, appearance and size of a scar.

During treatment, try a good concealer with a shade of green to balance out the redness. Yellow can help, but may not be good for darker skin tones. People with darker skin tones can try coloring their skin around the scar to help it blend in naturally. This procedure can be costly and is permanent, so liquid concealers are sometimes a better option.

Acne scars, pitted scars or chicken pox marks can be filled in with collagen injections. More than one treatment is required, and they are quite costly. Doctors can also inject steroids to reduce inflammation, fade redness, and help smooth and flatten the scar areas. These are quite costly and require multiple treatments.

To smooth the skin, also try microdermabrasion or dermabrasion. These treatments exfoliate the top layer of skin and flatten scar tissue. They can be done with a machine or a scrub with small granules a few times a week. There are kits that can be used at home, or the treatment can be done in a spa or dermatologist’s office.

Lastly, scar reduction can be done by surgery or laser treatments. These are very invasive and require some downtime. For these reasons, preventive care is very important at the beginning of an injury.

A Cure for Your Acne

Finding the Right Cure for your Acne

There are many causes of acne and the unattractive scars it leaves your skin with. Acne can be caused by stress, poor skin care, and certain foods. Some acne is caused by genetics, age, and health conditions. It is most important to take good care of your skin to promote healing of acne and prevent acne scars. It is possible to heal acne lesions and overcome scarring, leaving your skin fresh and rejuvenated. It just takes finding the right cure for your acne and sticking to your treatment plan.

How to Get Started

Looking for acne treatment can be overwhelming. There are so many over-the-counter washes, creams ,and gels dedicated to acne. A good number of drugstore formulas are safe and do not go into the body, so there are no chances of drug interactions. Over-the-counter acne treatments help by taking care of bacteria on the skin, keeping the skin clean and preventing pores from clogging through exfoliation.

Microdermabrasion is very helpful for exfoliation and can restore healthy skin, which helps to prevent scars. This leaves skin smooth and feeling like silk. It is important after using any acne washes, creams, or microdermabrasion that you apply an oil-free moisturizer to help restore the balance of moisture to the skin. Many times, the skin will overproduce natural oils when it is too dry, and lack of moisture can actually lead to acne.

If you have deep, severe, pitted acne, see a dermatologist to help you with medical treatment of your acne. A physician can help you find an aggressive treatment if needed for acne and acne scars. Medical treatments include laser therapy, surgical lancing, and chemical peels. These things can be costly, and some may have side effects. Trying home therapy first is always best for your skin and your budget.

Acne is More than Just Skin Deep

The causes of acne may lie well beneath your skin. Those who suffer from depression and emotional stress can suffer from acne even beyond their teenage years. One reason for this is the inability to regulate hormones and chemicals associated with stress, and this can cause severe outbreaks. Many times, older acne sufferers may need to seek professional counseling to help learn techniques to deal with stress and depression. This may help with self-esteem issues and also help calm down acne breakouts.

Eating Right with Acne

Diet really doesn’t have a whole lot of influence on acne, and there are very few things in the diet that can affect or cause acne. But not eating healthily affects the entire body and how it fights off acne breakouts. When your body doesn’t obtain the proper nutrients and vitamins, it cannot heal itself. When you suffer from acne scars, you need proper nutrition to regenerate healthy skin cells. A dietitian can help you plan a good diet to help your body get what it needs. Each body has its own individual needs, and meal plans can be developed to optimize your skin’s healing capacity. While diet may not be the cure for your acne, it may help with the skin healing.
The situation at hand is that stress can make acne worse, and worsened acne can lead to more stress. Getting help for stress, eating right, and finding the right cure for your acne helps in the long run. There are so many choices for treatment to make you look and feel your best!

Advanced Scar Removal

The Removal of Advanced Scars

Most scars can be treated and their appearance reduced with simple home treatments that include exfoliation, nourishment, and moisture. Some scars such as keloids and hypertrophic scars may need advanced scar removal. Keloid and hypertrophic scars happen when the body overproduces healing substances that cause excess tissue to form at the site of an injury. They can be treated with long-term home treatment, but certain situations may require a doctor’s care.

Preventing the Need for Advanced Scar Removal

If you are prone to severe scarring, the first way to prevent the need for advanced scar removal is to protect your skin from injury. Try to avoid excess piercings as they are a major culprit in developing keloid scarring. Keep your arms and legs covered when hiking or riding a bike. Use a good moisturizer and take care of any injuries right away.

As soon as you receive an injury to the skin, wash the area thoroughly to remove dirt and debris. Cover the area with a clean bandage or pressure dressing. Keep the area clean and dry until the wound is closed. You can even apply a dab of antibiotic cream, as these are known to help minimize scarring. After wound closure, begin using a silicone-based wound gel or bandage.

The best provide nourishment and moisture and keep healing skin protected. This minimizes scars from the beginning of the injury. Often, there are scar conditions that require further treatment, such as keloids or large wounds. Here are some advanced scar removal techniques that can be used as a last resort:

Cortisone Injections

Doctors can treat severe scars with cortisone injections. These help reduce inflammation, slow scar tissue formation, and lighten redness. They are effective but can have side effects. There may be pain at the site of injections, allergic reactions, or color changes in the skin tissue. They are usually given monthly for 3 months with an out-of-pocket cost of about $60 each, since insurance may not cover them if they are merely for cosmetic reasons.

Cryosurgery

Doctors can freeze scar tissue with cryosurgery to help flatten thickened or overgrown scar tissue. This type of treatment can help with very large scars. This treatment is said to be painful and can cause itching and irritated skin. There are also home cryosurgery kits that cost around $200.

Laser Treatment

These treatments are between $1,000 and $5,000 and are very complicated. The doctor needs to find just the right laser that will be most effective on the scar tissue. After laser treatments, doctors will also bleach the skin to further lighten the scar. The one side effect of laser treatments is that keloid scarring may worsen or come back. This is due to burns to the skin caused by the laser further damaging the tissue.

Surgical Removal

When scar tissue is very thick, large, and resistant to any other treatment, the last option is surgical removal of scar tissue. A surgeon can cut out the scar tissue and sew the skin back together to create only a line of scar tissue. This can cost between $500 and $3,000 depending on the size of the scar. Since this is surgery, there is a risk of infection and no guarantee that the treatment will be effective.

Taking care of injuries before they become out of control can help to prevent the need for advanced scar removal. This avoids damage to the skin and the increased costs of fading the scar in the long run.