Question: I am a 26-year-old black woman. All through high school, I begged my mother to let me get my ears pierced. She said to wait until I graduated from college and was on my own. I did. On each ear, the piercing left a huge scar. The doctor called it a keloid. What are keloids and what is their treatment?

Answer: Keloids are scars that form far too much scar tissue. The result is an unsightly, overgrown and sometimes disfiguring scar. Scars from surgery, from an inadvertent cut and from procedures as innocuous as ear piercing can become keloids. People of Asian and African descent are particularly vulnerable to developing such scars.

I don't want to discourage you, but keloid treatment often involves a recurrence of a keloid scar. Plastic surgeons and dermatologists are the doctors to consult for possible correction.

I'll give you some examples of how keloids are treated:

One way is injecting them with potent cortisone drugs, such as triamcinolone. A good response occurs in 70 percent of patients, but the recurrence rate is also high.

Excision of the scar followed by triamcinolone injections into the newly healing tissues is another method.

Silicone gel sheeting can reduce the size of a keloid. The sheeting is cut to cover the keloid and is taped in place. It's left on the keloid for up to 24 hours, then washed and reapplied. The sheet is replaced about every two weeks.

Freezing the keloid,

Radiation after surgical excision is another way to remove keloids.

Use of a laser in combination with cortisone injections has its proponents.

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To Your Good Health: Keloid is scar that won't stop growing