Scar treatment London

Scar Removal Treatments In London

Our qualified dermatologists provide a range of scar treatment options to help minimise and reduce the appearance of scars. Consultations and treatments are conducted at our private clinic in the Harley Street medical district of London

Scarring

Scars, even small ones, can make you feel uncomfortable and self-conscious. Concealing and camouflage make-up can help but you may also wish to have some treatment to lessen the impact of the scar.

Steroid injections

A raised scar such as a hypertrophic or keloid scar can be treated using many mini injections containing corticosteroids. These are placed in the scar to reduce inflammation and flatten the scar. Our consultants will repeat the infections every four weeks or so, monitoring the appearance of the scar.

You may require multiple scar treatments over several months to achieve the desired result. However, some patients fail to respond or experience recurrence after treatment.

Using pressure treatments

These are often advised after serious burns or skin grafts and it is best to start treatment sooner rather than later, once initial healing has taken place.

We offer several pressure treatments for scarring:

• Pressure dressings – these are elastic and stretch over the scar and can be worn 24 hours a day. Usually they are worn for at least six months (you have several dressings that can be replaced and washed and that you take off for bathing and washing)
• Silicone gel sheets – these are often used with pressure dressings but need to be in place for 12 hours a day. They are particularly good at preventing and reducing keloid and hypertrophic scars

Scar treatment with lasers

Our consultants have access to many different types of laser, some of which can be used to reduce the appearance of scars. Pulsed dye laser therapy can target the small blood vessels around a scar that make it look very red.

Some of the techniques we use are also employed in our cosmetic dermatology treatments. Laser re-surfacing is particularly effective for certain types of scars. The top layers of skin peel away and the laser acts on the dermis to stimulate collagen production. These two processes expand the tissues within the scar, raising it to the level of the surrounding skin.

Fillers

Dermal fillers can provide a temporary improvement in the appearance of pitted scars, but the effects tend to wear off after a few months. Repeat treatments can be effective.

Skin needling

Our consultants can use skin needling devices, which can also stimulate collagen production within the deeper layers of skin to help treat pitted scars.

Surgical scar revision

Plastic surgery techniques are sometimes required for patients with scars on the body due to trauma, burns, skin grafts or other surgery.

If the original wound site has healed forming a very obvious scar, it is sometimes possible to perform surgery to reopen the wound and then reclose it in a more favourable way.

Healing takes several weeks then several months of after care are required before the full final effect can be seen.