Hypertrophic scars/pixie ears post facelift? (Photo)

Question

I'm 12 months post facelift which I had with a surgeon in Rome. Following surgery I had 5 laser treatments on the incision sites as part of their standard protocol. I've since been using contratubex and silicon sheets. For the first 8/9 months things seemed to be going reasonably well. In the past couple of months however there has been a lot of hypertrophic formation, and this has exacerbated the pixie ears. Who in the UK would be expert at scar revision and ear lobule recreation?

Arthur Dean Jabs, MD, PhD, FACS · Answer

This type of thing can occur if there is tension on the closure or if certain types of sutures were used in the closure. It is also more prevalent in certain groups of people who are genetically predisposed to scarring. 
At this point, the treatment should be excision and closure with injection of Kenalog at the same time. 
A more reliable but more expensive definitive treatment would involve excision of the scars, followed by three low-dose radiation treatments to the area. This is the most effective treatment known for scarring in this area

All the best,
Dr. J

Dilip D. Madnani, MD, FACS · Answer

its best to wait a full  year then consider revision facelift to improve the scarring around your ears.

Raffy Karamanoukian, MD, FACS · Answer

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

Stephen Prendiville, MD · Answer

I am very sorry to see that you have had this experience.  A revision facelift will most likely be the best solution for your problem.  I would recommend Dominic Bray in London.

Hypertrophic scars/pixie ears post facelift? (Photo)

Answers (4)