Colloid scars - skin defect or genetic abnormality?

Among other skin defects, colloid scars, or more correctly, keloid (from the Greek word "keleis" - "swelling" and "eidos" - "similarity, appearance") - the most unpleasant. They cause physical and psychological inconvenience to their owner. Keloid is a hard scar that stands out sharply above the surface of the skin, a scar or scar, most often having a wrong shape and increasing over time. Many believe that their education is associated with improper removal of postoperative sutures, but everything is not so simple.

Doctors to date do not have full confidence why colloid scars are formed. Like other types of scars, keloids can occur due to wound healing and burns, surgical operations, diseases such as furunculosis, lupus, chicken pox. However, they can manifest themselves after a certain time after wound healing or spontaneously form on an intact skin area for no apparent reason.

The researchers found that colloid scars basically have a genetic form of manifestation or are provoked by a change in cell division and growth, but these modifications have not yet been studied to the end. Medical statistics suggest that 10-20% of patients with scarring on the skin are owners of keloid scars.

It is very important that the doctor be able to determine the colloidal scar. Photos of such scars are quite common, it helps the patient at an early stage visually determine the onset of skin defect and consult a doctor in time. To date, there is no universal method that removes colloid scars, each case requires an individual approach.

At the moment, the basis that offers the removal of colloid scars, is the injection of steroids. The injections are usually prescribed for 3-4 weeks, during which time the keloids are leveled, and their growth ceases, but even in the case of an ideal result, a trace remains that is different in appearance and sensitivity from healthy areas of the skin.

Another effective method of treating keloid scars is the use of a tight bandage. In this case, the pressure stops the growth of the affected tissue cells, but to achieve the optimum effect, the bandage should be worn around the clock throughout the year. In addition, this method of treatment can not cope with scars older than 1 year.

The laser is also considered effective in the fight against keloids. With its help, the scar can be made less red and not so prominent above the surface. For this it is necessary to undergo several treatment sessions, preferably in combination with a tight bandage, steroids or silicone plates, this will prevent relapses.

Cryotherapy is quite effective for lesions of hypertrophied tissue and keloid scars that occurred no earlier than 1 year ago. This treatment often entails a darkening of the area of exposure.

Surgical intervention for keloid scars is the second most effective treatment line and is used mainly on scars that do not respond to steroid injections, tight bandages, or for large areas of damage. The operations are rather risky, as they can provoke the appearance of a similar or larger keloid scar. Irradiation is mandatory after surgery.

A local silicone patch or gel is a fairly new and relatively painless method of eliminating keloid scars. The use of silicone wafers should be started immediately after wound healing in patients prone to developing keloids. Gel or patch is recommended to be applied for the whole day. Treatment lasts 3-6 months.

A few words should be said about the protection from the sun of the affected areas, it is best to use a sunscreen with a high degree of SPF, it should be applied 2 times a day for 6 months after the appearance of the scar.

Unfortunately, due to the nature of the keloid and insufficient research in this area, none of the above methods guarantees 100% of the absence of relapse.