Crazy Keloid

For ISM this past week, I had a mentor visit where I got to view a new surgical procedure.

The new surgical procedure I had the opportunity to witness was a keloid removal. I had previously been mildly familiar with keloids and knew that they were excessive growths of scar tissue. During my mentor visit with Dr. Cain, he explained how there are hypertrophic scars and keloids, and keloids were the hardest to remove.

The patient that I witnessed the keloid removal surgery on had a keloid behind their ear that had developed from a piercing. Dr. Cain mentioned to me that individuals with piercings can be prone to get keloids in areas of the head, neck, and behind the ear and that dark skinned individuals are more likely to develop keloids. When removing the keloid, Dr. Cain made an incision around the growth before removing the keloid in its entirety. After the excess scar tissue was removed, Dr. Cain manipulated with the remaining skin in order to make it easier for him to suture the incision. Before suturing the incision, he also injected the area with steroid shots which he told me were to prevent the keloid from returning.

Witnessing this keloid removal was an interesting event and I was glad that I had the ability to see one of my first ever keloids. Learning more about these scar tissue developments and the different types will definitely aid me in my understanding of how to make the most accurate incisions that will create the least amount of scar visibility as possible.