Painful and unsightly scars - 11 months post-op. (photos)

Question

My surgery was on 15 April 2016 . I am in pain and I need advise. I have tried the scar gel as advised without result. My surgeon says he will try steroids injections but advised it will be painful and I should think about it before I go back to him. Is it me or did the surgeon mess up. I cant show my clevage because of the scars and I am down from 36JJ to 36C. My tummy is so visible people ask if I am pregnant or what happened to my lovely figure. I am so sad.

Lisa J. Peters, MD · Answer

It sounds like you have two concerns.  With regard to your scars, the hypertrophic scarring I see in your photos is a risk of any surgery.  There are certain people who are more prone to raised or thickened scars (black people and Asian people), there are certain parts of the body that are more likely to develop them (the under the breast scar after breast reduction is a frequent location), and there are certain circumstances that increase the risk of hypertrophic scars (e.g. areas that had open wounds that had to heal from the inside out).  The scars you showed in the photos do not appear to be the result of a mistake on the part of your surgeon.  I'd recommend trying the steroid injections.  Yes, they injections hurt during the procedure, but most patients will find that the steroid makes a significant improvement in the scar pain and thickness over the next several weeks.With regard to your proportions after breast reduction, the limited photo you showed of your breasts look like your surgeon achieved a nice size for your body.  Making very large breasts smaller and more appropriate for a person's frame may make the tummy look larger relatively speaking.  Some use this as motivation to lose weight while other patients may choose to have a tummy tuck to make improvements in their overall shape.  Before pursuing the tummy tuck option, however, you should consider that you may develop hypertrophic scars in that location as well, so the benefit of the improved shape and proportions would need to be worth that risk to you.

Ellen A. Janetzke, MD · Answer

Hello and thank you for your question and photos! I would recommend either the steroid injection, or a scar revision with the application of the Embrace Scar Management System. I have see wonderful result on my patients that are prone to, or obtain scarring such as yours. Embrace releases the tension from the incision line, as well as keeps the incision line covered and has medical grade silicone gel to help.

Jeremy S. Hurren, BSc, MBBS, FRCS (Plast) · Answer

Scarring is determined more by your genetic make up than the technique of surgery. So this type of scarring is usually more an indication of how your body heals and not evidence that your surgeon messed up.
Black skin is at higher risk of adverse scarring such as hypertrophic scarring and keloid scarring.
Steroid injections can be helpful although often need to be repeated. I have used local anaesthetic to numb the scars before injecting the scar although local anaesthetic can also be painful but probably less painful than injecting into painful scars.
I wish you well.

Painful and unsightly scars - 11 months post-op. (photos)

Answers (3)

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Breast Reduction

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.

Painful and unsightly scars - 11 months post-op. (photos)

Answers (3)

Browse related questions

Recommended reading

Everything you need to know about Breast Reduction

Our mission is to create a world where every investment in modern beauty is Worth It.