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The most important element of all of plastic surgery is how you scar. Every patient wishes to have minimal or no scarring at all. I can't tell you how many times a day I have patients who come in here from other places and tell me, "Do you do the scarless breast augmentation?" There is no such thing. Every single person who undergoes any procedure will have a scar. Therefore, we should talk about not no scar, but which scar is ideal and which scar is undesirable.
What's an undesirable scar? That's a scar that is thick, raised, wide, and colored. What's an ideal scar? It's thin, it's flat, it's narrow, and it's white. That's what we're looking to strive for during plastic surgery. What I refer to is the 50-50 rule. The 50-50 rule goes as follows: 50% of your outcome is due to me. Everything has to do with your doctor, how he closes, how careful he is, how traumatic he is with your tissue; 50% of it has to do with you, what you do after surgery. Do you go running the next day? Do you follow the instructions? The key is if the doctor does his job, which is closes you out - I don't let anyone close you other than myself - that's the key element. I'm meticulous and I do all the closure. That way, I ensure my portion of it. Then, I hand the baton off to you, and you do your portion and you heal the way you heal. Now, most people actually heal better than they think. Often, doctors will tell them, "You're a bad healer, you don't scar well," when in reality, probably it's that they never closed them well.
The things that do work, let's talk about what helps with scar management. Once you had your surgery, there are a few things we can do, a few things we can do to help you that have been proven to work. We can, number one, avoid the sun. It makes a huge difference. Number two, massaging scars. It's free, makes a huge difference. Number three, silicone strips and/or liquid silicone does help, and some help with some taping.
Now, what are the things that do not work or have never been proven to work? Vitamin E, everyone loves vitamin E. Lasers, I can't tell you how many people ask me for lasers to remove scars. Lasers take care of color. They will not flatten a thick scar. Mederma or other potions and things that people buy, and they get sold on TV late night. None of this stuff really works. Most of it comes down to how things are closed, and that happens while you're asleep. If you wake up with staples, you know that you're going to have a bad scar. There is no substitute for your surgeon. Therefore, in order to minimize, not eliminate your scar, put much more energy in how you're closed than what potion or lotion you're going to use afterwards.
What's an undesirable scar? That's a scar that is thick, raised, wide, and colored. What's an ideal scar? It's thin, it's flat, it's narrow, and it's white. That's what we're looking to strive for during plastic surgery. What I refer to is the 50-50 rule. The 50-50 rule goes as follows: 50% of your outcome is due to me. Everything has to do with your doctor, how he closes, how careful he is, how traumatic he is with your tissue; 50% of it has to do with you, what you do after surgery. Do you go running the next day? Do you follow the instructions? The key is if the doctor does his job, which is closes you out - I don't let anyone close you other than myself - that's the key element. I'm meticulous and I do all the closure. That way, I ensure my portion of it. Then, I hand the baton off to you, and you do your portion and you heal the way you heal. Now, most people actually heal better than they think. Often, doctors will tell them, "You're a bad healer, you don't scar well," when in reality, probably it's that they never closed them well.
The things that do work, let's talk about what helps with scar management. Once you had your surgery, there are a few things we can do, a few things we can do to help you that have been proven to work. We can, number one, avoid the sun. It makes a huge difference. Number two, massaging scars. It's free, makes a huge difference. Number three, silicone strips and/or liquid silicone does help, and some help with some taping.
Now, what are the things that do not work or have never been proven to work? Vitamin E, everyone loves vitamin E. Lasers, I can't tell you how many people ask me for lasers to remove scars. Lasers take care of color. They will not flatten a thick scar. Mederma or other potions and things that people buy, and they get sold on TV late night. None of this stuff really works. Most of it comes down to how things are closed, and that happens while you're asleep. If you wake up with staples, you know that you're going to have a bad scar. There is no substitute for your surgeon. Therefore, in order to minimize, not eliminate your scar, put much more energy in how you're closed than what potion or lotion you're going to use afterwards.
Top 3 Tips For Minimizing a Scar Post-Surgery
Dr. Rady Rahban explains how each scar should appear following a skilled surgery and closure. He also advises on the best practices for a patient to avoid an undesirable scar.
