What can I do to improve the appearance of a scar from open heart surgery?

The subject line of my answer briefly summarizes some basic rules for treating scars from any cause. At least from the one photo provided, it appears that there are areas that are elevated and hypertrophic. So, these can be easily flattened via the use of intralesional injections of an anti-inflammatory agent. I cannot tell for sure, but there do not appear to be any portions that are indented (atrophic, depressed). If there are, these can be elevated with subcision. The majority of the scar appears to be flat and hypopigmented. For this, the use of professionally performed manual microneedlng (no need for the added expense and risk of adverse reactions with the addition of RF) combined with the application of topical tyrosine and lanatoprost can help to improve both the color and superficial texture and blend the area better with the surrounding normal skin. The hard science to support the use of expensive laser treatments and PRP unfortunately lags woefully behind the heavy marketing and social media hype to promote them. So, when it comes to these, you would be wise to exercise a healthy dose of buyer beware. You would also be wise to consult with an experienced, board certified cosmetic dermatologist and best of luck.

Plastic surgery scars require attention after surgery so that they remain cosmetically-appealing and barely noticeable. In our office, we use a protocol for scars that minimizes their activity in the 6-8 weeks after surgery. If you have late plastic surgery scars, you may also require laser and RF therapy to help reduce the longterm effects of the scarring. Keloids, hypertrophic scars, widened scars, red scars, and hyperpigmented scars all require scar modulation with topical creams followed by lasers and RF therapy. Topical skincare should be directed to a specific need, whether for pigmentation or hypertrophy and our office can guide you through the process to obtain the correct Plato’s Scar cream or Melarase cream for hypertrophy and discoloration. In terms of lasers, we would employ the vbeam laser for redness, Venus Viva RF, PRP microneedling, chemical peels, and Morpheus 8, fractional erbium, or fractional co2. All of these have their individual benefits. Most of all, we recommend you visit a solid plastic surgeon who understands surgical scar revision, laser therapy, and RF therapy for scars.

Best,
Dr. Karamanoukian
Realself100 Surgeon