What to do when the scar is swollen?

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Swollen, painful, itchy scars can be a sign of keloids. More seriously, if the scar has pus, it may be an infection. So what to do when the scar is swollen?

1. Why is the scar painful?

Swollen and painful scars are one of the possible manifestations of keloids. In addition, keloids can also be itchy, very uncomfortable, and scar tissue tends to grow larger and larger on the skin than the original lesion size. At that time, keloids can affect your daily activities such as body movement, friction in contact with clothes causing pain and loss of aesthetics.
Although the scar is swollen and painful, it is not harmful to health, but we need to recognize the cause of this condition to know how to treat and limit it so as not to affect the quality of life. Scar is a defense mechanism of the body that helps to heal damaged skin tissue. However, in some cases, when the healing process is over, the skin heals and is flat, instead of signaling to stop, the body continues the process, causing the scar to overgrow and cause scarring. keloid, hypertrophic scars.
Scars that are painful, itchy are not symptoms that appear in most cases of keloids or hypertrophic scars, only some cases feel pain and itching in the scar, especially those with muscle areas prone to scarring or people with dark skin.
The cause of this condition is because during the process of tissue welding, the body releases mediators, which break down the histamine envelopes and cause itching. Changes in weather or when friction, contact can also stimulate the scar to swell, red, and itchy.
In addition, the painful swelling of the scar is also due to the process of developing scar tissue that increases blood vessels to be able to carry oxygen and nutrients to the damaged skin, in order to regenerate and produce more tissue.

2. What to do when the scar is swollen?

What to do when the scar suddenly becomes swollen, painful, itchy must be the question of many people because this condition is very uncomfortable and affects their daily activities. There are many cases where patients have followed some advice and instructions on the internet or from relatives and friends such as applying ice, applying toothpaste, apple cider vinegar, applying fresh turmeric, ... However, the ways Doing this is not effective, and may even cause skin inflammation or scars to develop more than the original.
It is best when the scar is swollen and painful, the patient should go to a medical facility with expertise to check the condition and advise, choose the appropriate treatment method for keloids. The goal of scar treatment is mainly to flatten and fade the scar, so that the skin color and scar color are close together, and at the same time limit scar recurrence, scar does not cause itching by vascular treatment.
Currently, there are scar treatment methods depending on the location and size of the scar as follows:
Injection: Drug injection is a medical treatment that is often applied to small keloid scars. Common injectable drugs include steroids, interferon, or bleomycin. Depending on the progress of the scar, the scar is red, swollen, recurrent, and side effects are encountered for repeated injections. Usually, injections are highly effective in treating keloids when applied with scar removal surgery, cryotherapy with nitrogen gas, or silicone gels. Scar removal surgery: Surgery is a surgical treatment that is often applied to large keloid scars on a large area of ​​skin, indicated when other treatments such as injections are not effective, or skin damage is too great. The doctor will surgically remove the scar, then close it with stitches and skin grafts. However, before proceeding with surgery, it is necessary to consider factors such as: family history of keloids, infection at the surgical site, purulent scar, surgical site, type of trauma causing scarring, and tension. Skin after surgery, skin pigmentation. Scar removal surgery is often combined with corticosteroid injections to increase the effectiveness of the treatment, and most require additional adjunctive treatments to limit the risk of new scar formation. Cryotherapy: This therapy is often applied to small keloid scars, cooled with liquid nitrogen gas to destroy the capillaries and cells below the skin tissue, causing the scar tissue to necrosis, peel off, and collapse. It is possible to apply radiation therapy alone or in combination with scar removal surgery in the treatment of keloids to limit the risk of recurrent keloid scars, painful swelling, and itching. However, for the best results, it is best to have radiation therapy 2 weeks after surgery to remove the scar. However, this method causes side effects such as increased skin pigmentation and cancer risk. Other treatments: Applying medicine to soften and smooth the scar, relieves itching and pain when the scar is swollen. However, topical application can cause side effects such as skin atrophy, depigmentation, and vasodilation. In addition, there are compression bandages (commonly used in the treatment of burn scars), ligation (applied to areas that cannot be surgically removed), laser therapy (effective for newly formed keloid scars, angiogenesis, which helps relieve itching). In fact, there is no method that can completely cure scars. However, techniques can help reduce the itching and discomfort caused by swollen and painful scars, and improve the appearance of the scar for a more aesthetically pleasing appearance. It is important that the patient needs to be re-examined after treatment for instructions and examination of scar care, helping the wound to recover quickly and not to recur.

3. How to prevent and limit painful scars?

If you are a person who is prone to scarring, it is necessary to avoid skin injuries such as tattooing or performing unnecessary surgeries. To prevent scarring, especially keloid scars, proper wound care is required. Some ways to help the wound heal quickly and limit the risk of forming keloids, painful swollen scars such as:
Clean the wound, then use moisturizing wax to bandage it, but pay attention to how to bandage it. skin and must apply sufficient pressure to the wound. When the wound heals, use a silicone gel bandage to limit the risk of keloids forming and growing. For cases of keloid scars on the earlobe (due to ear piercing), specialized earrings should be used to create pressure to prevent keloids from forming. In order not to increase skin pigmentation in the scar, should be carefully covered when going out. Most scarring will improve after 8 weeks. However, when the back wound is swollen, painful, and itchy, it is best to visit a doctor to check the scar. Avoid scratching or using drugs to avoid dangerous side effects such as skin atrophy, skin darkening, vasodilation.
For more information on how to take care of your skin and treat scars or other health problems, please follow the website: Vinmec.com regularly to update many other useful information.

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