All operations and injuries result in scarring; some are more obvious than the others. Although good wound healing is expected after the operation, the abnormal and unwanted scarring can occur in the skin and deep tissues. The scars are usually cheesy, but they are a different color from the surrounding skin. The traces of staples and sutures used in the wound closure can be evident. In addition to these unsightly appearances, the scars have the potential to restrict the movement and function. Additional operations can be required to treat the abnormal scars.
The injuries, surgeries, some skin infections, burns, scarring are among the leading causes.
The wounds occurred on the skin are not repaired by the original tissue of the injured area, namely the skin tissue. The wounds heal with a special repair tissue called the fibrous tissue or healing tissue, which is created by the body and is different from the original tissue. The tissue that appears as a scar on the skin is healing tissue, not normal skin tissue. This is why the scars create a different appearance on the skin than on the skin. For this reason, we can conclude that every wound that includes all layers of the skin will heal by leaving a scar in place and the scars cannot be removed in any way. However, it is possible to make it less visible or inconspicuous, reduce it and narrow it. The plastic surgeons can use the special techniques to make the scar invisible, inconspicuous or similar to the natural lines or wrinkle lines in our body.
Reducing the leave most of the time in plastic surgery procedures and making them unostentatious and inconspicuous provide them similar to our natural lines or wrinkle lines in our body, or the current scar is moved to a concealed place.
If your plastic surgeon performs the first intervention for the injuries, your scar will be better. However, in an emergency situation, this is often not possible. In such cases, it would be appropriate to get the opinion of the plastic surgeon as early as possible. It is possible to reduce the scar with the treatments and interventions to be applied during the dressing and wound healing period in the post-intervention period. If your plastic surgeon requires the secondary interventions to reduce the scar after the injury, it will usually be appropriate to wait one year for the wound healing to be completed. However, in some cases, it cannot be necessary to wait for this period.
The wound healing follows a different course in every patient, at every age and in the different body parts, and the scar that forms also differs. The scar can be more prominent in the patients having dark skin color, the young people and patients with genetic predisposition. In addition, the scars formed on the shoulders, upper arms and chest cleavageline become more prominent. It is not possible to remove the raised (hypertrophic scars) or even the scars (keloid) that can occur in these areas with the surgery alone. Such scars should be followed closely and frequently by a plastic surgeon. It is possible to make the scar more obscure with dressing materials that your doctor deems appropriate, the drugs applied locally or injected into the scar.
The surgery to remove the scar is usually performed under the local anesthesia and the patient is discharged on the same day. A small dressing is applied for the first 48 hours. Then, the antibiotic skin ointment recommended by your doctor is applied to the suture lines at the certain intervals; as if applying a cream and the patient is asked to take a bath every day, by leaving the operation area open. Thus, the patient can return to her normal life as soon as possible. Although it varies according to the body area, the skin sutures are removed on the 7th day. In some cases, the suture materials are used, which do not need to be removed due to better results.
The regular follow-up is important in order to have satisfactory results in the postoperative period. Your plastic surgeon calls you for a check-up at the regular intervals, especially in the first 2 years, and applies additional medical treatments when deemed necessary. Even if everything goes well in the postoperative period, your scar will be more prominent and red in the first 3 months, as in the normal wound healing periods. In the 6th month and later, these scars and swelling gradually decrease and become vague.
After the scar revision surgery, the doctor's recommendations should be strictly followed, especially the sunlight should be avoided.