Scar Treatment

SCARS AND SCAR THERAPY

Good incision care, a healthy lifestyle and a skilled surgeon help to minimize scarring. Dr. Scott McDonald and his team are some of the best closing incisions and hiding incisions in clothing lines or hairlines.

However, nearly every surgery will result in some form of a visible scar. Everyone heals differently; genetics and skin color have a big part of how one heals. Incision lines often appear red at first, but most scars fade over time. If a scar becomes raised or wider, various treatments can be used to reduce the scar.

Hypertrophic scars and keloids arise from some injury to the skin that goes deep enough to affect the dermal layer, like surgery. Keloids and hypertrophic scars aren’t harmful, contagious, or cancerous, but can cause pain and discomfort. If you are in pain from a keloid, and are unhappy with its appearance, there are multiple treatment options available to reduce and remove keloid scarring. Treatment options include surgery, steroid injections, lasering, and at-home products.

The cost of scar removal ranges from $75-$2,000 depending on the type and duration of treatment. Scar removal is often considered a cosmetic procedure, therefore is not usually covered by health insurance.

Dr. Scott McDonald’s routine for reducing keloids and hypertrophic scars is an injection of diluted corticosteroid directly to the scar and reevaluation at 4-6 weeks. Based on the effect, follow up treatments will be performed. This may be combined with topical silicone and/or pressure therapy.

Steroid Injections – The most popular type of keloid treatment involves a direct injection to the keloid with corticosteroids. This helps to flatten and reduce the size of the keloid. Steroid injections cost less than $100 per treatment and on average, 4 treatments are typically needed.
Silcone Sheeting – silicone strips are an ultra-thin sheet of silicone that is applied and are often worn 24 hours per day.
Lasers – Lasers often target blood vessels in the scar which can remove these blood vessels and prevent scar growth. They also can lighten the red or pink color often seen in scars and reduce pain, itch and hardness.
Surgery – Sometimes surgery is performed to cut out the scar or redirect the lines of tension on the scar. Usually, surgery is considered when other treatment options have failed.

SCAR PREVENTION

All surgeries result in some sort of scar, although Dr. McDonald is a top surgeon at minimizing the appearance.

Certain things are beyond your control to heal without scarring, such as age, race and genetics. Some factors are controllable, which may help you prevent scars; Maintain a healthy balanced diet, avoid smoking, and stay hydrated. SPF is your best friend; avoid sun exposure to healing incisions and cover healed incisions with SPF.

When considering scar removal, your best course of action is to see Dr. McDonald for a medical consultation. The location and size of the keloid could mean the removal is medically necessary. If the treatment is deemed medically necessary, our office will submit the case to your insurance company for coverage.