There are many types of scars, and keloid scars are just one type. They are essentially abnormal scars that tend to grow outward, beyond the boundary of the site of the original injury. They look raised and ill-defined in terms of how the skin grows in that spot, and could be red and itchy.
Not everyone who has an injury will get a keloid scar, according to the American Academy of Dermatology. But if you have keloid-prone skin, you are more likely than others to have this type of scar after a burn, cut or severe acne. You may get a keloid scar after getting a tattoo or getting your ears pierced, for example. You could even get it after a nasty bout with chickenpox, or after surgery.
Unnatural Growth
Why do keloids grow so unnaturally? Scientists say these abnormal scars form when there are changes detected in the signals that the wound site cells send. These cells tell your body to start making more fibrous tissue than it really has to, long after the initial wound has healed. That’s why you see such raised appearances.
Keloid scars can be minimized with steroids, laser treatments, radiotherapy, surgical removal and cortisone injections. You can even combine a couple of these approaches to see results. over-the-counter ointments and gels such as Scarfade are also known to be effective on keloid scars.
Who is at Risk?
Anyone can get them, but there are certain ethnic groups that are more prone, such as Hispanics and African Americans. In fact, keloid scars are 15X more prevalent in these ethnic groups when compared with ethnic groups such as Caucasians.
In addition, certain body areas are more at risk of developing keloids, such as the upper back, upper arm, sternum, back of neck and earlobes. Keloid scars tend to be more noticeable than other scar types, due to the fact that they grow past the original site of the wound and compromise healthy skin tissue. This also makes them more difficult to treat.
Once these raised scars keep growing and developing, you could feel itchiness, irritation or pain at the site. Plus, keloid scars covering a big patch of skin or those that appear on joints decrease mobility for the knees, elbows or stomach.
Effective Ways to Reduce Keloid Scars
As mentioned above, there are many invasive ways to treat keloid scars, but we find the most non-invasive, convenient, affordable, and effective way to reduce their appearance is to apply Scarfade. This scientifically-proven topical treatment tells the body to slow down all that production of collagen. The result? You don’t get so much abnormal skin in that area, which reduces the appearance of your keloid scar.
You can use Scarfade on other types of scars, too, such as hypertrophic or acne scars. Check out our product line here and get in touch with us to learn more!