When you accidentally cut yourself or pierce your skin, it is normal for there to be some scar tissue. However, some people have problems with excessive scarring, causing large, red areas to form around the area where the skin was traumatized. Keloids can be treated in many ways to reduce their size or remove them altogether.
After the skin is injured, it will either heal normally, or hypertrophic or keloid scars may form. Both of these are types of excessive scarring, but hypertrophic scars are confined to the margins of the wound and they regress with time. Keloid scars do not stay within a wound’s margins, and they do not regress at all. These scars can range in color from pink to red. They are usually dome-shaped and shiny, and they can be itchy or even painful to the touch. Any type of skin trauma can cause keloid scars to develop, including burns, acne scars, surgical incisions, and chickenpox scars. Some people can get a keloid on ear from a piercing. About 10 percent of the population gets keloids, with men and women being equally affected.
Treatments for Keloids
The treatment for keloids depends on the severity of the problem. A doctor’s intervention for keloids usually isn’t necessary, although many people want keloid removal surgery because of the ugliness of the scars. Although most keloids are benign, if they continue to grow uncontrollably, it could be a sign that you have skin cancer and you will need to see a doctor for a diagnosis. Your doctor will examine the area and then take a biopsy to check for cancerous cells. If there is cancer, then the treatment will depend on the severity of the cancer.
Treatments for keloids range from oils to keep the scars moist, to cortisone injections to reduce inflammation, to freezing the skin to aid in keloid removal. If you are prone to keloids, avoid piercing your body parts as you can get a keloid on ear or any other part of your body that has been pierced. You should avoid getting tattoos as well.