Time and tape

Steven Wallach, MD answers: Getting rid of thyroid surgery scar

My neck scar is 4" long and it pooches out all the way across. This is a fairly new incision but everyone else's is just a flat line even in the beginning. What are my options for flattening it and making it blend in with the rest of my skin? Which procedure would best address this scar?


Steven Wallach, MD
11 months ago

I can't tell from your photo how new your scar is, but initially there is swelling of the scar.  Usually the upper portion is more swollen than the lower portion.  I usually tape all my incisions for several weeks. I think the tape pressure helps keep the scars flat. It may be the moisture as well. It is all theoretical why silicone sheeting or tape help.  This is the simplest form of treatment. Close observation is also key. If the scar is becoming hypertrophic sometimes steroid injections help as well.  I think that most of the topical agensts like Mederma and scarguard don't do much.

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A: Pooching out is a good thing early on!

Robert M. Freund, MD
11 months ago

The best skin closure for neck surgery requires som e pooching out of the incision.
Wound healing works by laying down collagen in the wound and then chewing it up and starting all over again, and again. With each cycle, the collagen becomes more organized- tht is a good thing. Another thing the wound does is contract. Everything gets smaller. Sometimes this contraction will pull the skin inward, creating an indented look. In order to compensate for this contraction, good surgeons will evert the edges (pooching). Over time the eversion flattens out.
So relax.
Other remedies include;
1) silicone sheets and gels
2) steroid injections and tapes - only for raised ugly hypertrophic scars.
3) avoid Mederma and any treatment that has hydrocortisone in it. Mederma does nothing and daily use of a steroid will weaken a scar excessively.

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