Virginia Beach Scar Removal doctors

	Arnold R. Oppenheim, MD Virginia Beach Dermatologist 5320 Providence Road 202, Virginia Beach		53 answers
	Burton M. Sundin, MD Richmond Plastic Surgeon 7611 Forest Ave Suite 210, Richmond
	Kevin Bounds, MD Virginia Beach Plastic Surgeon 1815 Colonial Medical Court, Virginia Beach
	Martin J. Carney, MD Virginia Beach Plastic Surgeon 1868 Wildwood Dr., Virginia Beach
	Kyle S. Choe, MD Virginia Beach Facial Plastic Surgeon 4400 Corporation Lane Suite 102, Virginia Beach

Recent Answers

I Have a 3/4 Inch Indented Scar on my Face from a Cyst Removal. Would Subcision Work? I understand that cysts can leave a depression in the skin but the whole incision is indented? Was this surgical error? I was thinking of trying subcision but don't know if it would work. Please advise on how to elevate the scar. Thanks.

A: See a Dermatologic Surgeon or Plastic Surgeon

Sometimes, this is the way a cyst will heal, especially if sub-sutaneous sutures are not placed.

Once the cyst is gone, there is an empty space where the cyst once resided. Since nature abhors a vacuum, serum and granulation tissue fill in this hole. However, unless the wound was closed, this space is not filled in properly with the normal laying down of collagen and a dimple, sometimes quite unsightly may result.

It is best to see a plastic surgeon or a dermatologic surgeon who will excise the dimple and approximate the two sides. You will still have a scar, but the dimple area will be gone.

Incidentally, the material which drains from a cyst, that appears infected is usually quite sterile. It is a foreign body reaction to the keratin that filled the cyst cavity. Keratin when it is outside the cyst wall, can cause an intense foreign body reaction. This will create an exudate that looks like pus. However, a culture of this material rarely returns a bacterial pathogen.

Arnold R. Oppenheim, MD

Virginia Beach Dermatologist

Do I Have a Hypertrophic Scar? (photo) About 3 months ago I had a bike accident and got road rash on my face. The left side of my upper lip was gashed up pretty bad, but i kept it out of the sun for that time. It has been healing nicely, but there is a very tiny very slightly raised red line approximately 0.4 cm. long. A very good dermatologist told me that its not a scar and will look completely normal on its own, but I am still worried. I recieved a small scrape on vermilion border of upper lip not same color as lip can this be fix

A: Hypertrophic scar

This appears to be a hypertrophic scar to my eye.

At this point I would only recommend a silicone gel such as ScarGuard MD to flatten this lesion out. Later, if the scar is still disturbing you, a CO2 laser would treat this quite nicely.

Arnold R. Oppenheim, MD

Virginia Beach Dermatologist

How to Correct Small but Persistent Dog Ears on Forehead? I had a dermatofibroma removed from my forehead, and it left small but visible dog-ears. I have read that small dog ears can go away with time, but I've now waited a year with no improvement. Is there still any chance they'll subside on their own? If not, would dermabrasion be an option, to sand down the excess skin and make it level with the scar? Or is it simply best to re-open the scar and extend it? The scar is about 12mm long, the dog ears are ~5mm wide with maybe a couple mm protrusion.

A: Excise

Agree with Dr. Placik, at this point these dog ear are not going to resolve on their own. Excision by a facial surgeon would be your best solution.

Arnold R. Oppenheim, MD

Virginia Beach Dermatologist