I had an accident about a month ago and have a large scar

Question:
I had an accident about a month ago and have a large scar on my cheek as a result. Do I allow it to heal completely before coming in for a consultation? If I get scar revision surgery, can you treat my acne scars at the same time?

Answer:
I am very sorry to hear about your accident. I am sure that the facial scar is a constant reminder of your accident. My suggestion to you is to wait before doing anything to the scar. If the scar is poorly healing and the skin edges are not well approximated or the wound is not healing well, then perhaps an earlier intervention would be in order. However, in my experience, time is more effective in healing scars and wounds than any other modality. Normal scar maturity (ie. the time it takes for the scar to really heal and diminish) can be over a year. Intervention prior to that time may prove to be unnecessary as the scar may not be noticeable at all with just some time. You can put on a silicone gel sheeting or apply scar guard or mederma to the maturing scar. This is one intervention which can be of benefit during the healing phase. I would be happy to see you in consultation and perhaps after the scar has matured and we have decided to go ahead with scar revision, we can address the acne scars that you are concerned with.

Posted by Dr. Philip Schoenfeld