Treatment for keloid scars
There are 3 treatment options for keloid scars:
I will briefly discuss each one.
Surgical treatment of keloid scars
This is the most effective and the least complex of the available forms of treatment, the recurrence rate however is thought to be about 50%.
Lasers have been tried as an alternative to knife surgery but so far the outcomes are no better.
Non surgical treatments for keloid scars
Interferon therapy (drugs acting on the immune system), has been reported as effective in reducing keloid scarring however it does have significant side effects. Examples are toxicity, flu like symptoms, depression, nausea and vomiting. Prolonged compression of scar tissue can theoretically soften and break up keloid scars, however the practicality of this option depends on the location of the keloid. Other non-surgical interventions that are currently being tried with varying results include antihistamines, vitamins, nitrogen mustard, Verapamil, retinoic acids.
Combined treatments for keloid scarring
One option involves surgical removal of scar tissue in combination with a couple of steroid injections -one at the time of the surgery and the second injection about 3 to 4 weeks later. However, this type of treatment is variously reported as having between a 50% to 70% rate of recurrence.
Another option combines surgery with external type radiotherapy. Radiation has the effect of interfering with skin growth (fibroblasts) and collagen production. Research varies on which type of combination therapy is the more effective. Both radiotherapy and steroid drugs have side effects so you need to discuss with your doctor the most effective. It may be worth getting a second opinion before proceeding with either treatment.