Scar correction in Dubai

Scar correction –Dr. Fadi El Jiz, American Board Certified plastic surgeon explains the possibilities of the scar treatment.

A lot of patients in the United Arab Emirates turn to the plastic surgeon to remove their scar of different origin. If we would like to understand the state-of-the-art scar treatments, first we need to have to understand how scars are produced by our body?

Scarring is a natural, physilological process to repair any tissue damage, but in general, when we talk about scars, we think about the skin. The superficial scrathes don’t cause scar development, but any damage, deeper than the dermis (the strong layer of the skin) would initiate a repair. The gap between the wound edges would be filled up with a granulation tissue, which would form the base of the developing scar. Although the defect is closed, the structure of the newly formed tissue (eg. the orientation of the collagen fibers) is different, so the texture and the colour of the scar is always different. This makes the scar obvious, embarrassing, disturbing – cosmetically unpleasant. In general, scars tend to contract (to bring the wound edges closer) – but in some cases this could cause a painful, movement restricting contracture. Correction of these scars are not cosmetic any more, there is a well established medical indication – insurance would cover the costs.

What could the cosmetic surgeons do against the scar? It is quite obvious from the mechanism of the scar development, that the extent of the tissue damage is crucial. Plastic surgeons use fine instruments or laser to avoid the unnecessary damage. They try to approximate the wound precisely and without tension to minimize the gap between the edges, so the resulting scar would be as thin as possible. The training of plastic surgeons makes them capable of planning the incisions according to the orientation of the collagen fibers and the physiological skin movements. Hiding the scar in a natural wrinkle or crease could also help to make it less conspicuous.

What can the plastic surgeon do with an existing scar? The quality of the scar depends on the patients’ age, gender, skin type, hormonal status and a lot of other (partly unknown) factors. There are different non-surgical methods to prevent the excessive scar formation or reduce an existing scar. Diffent ointments and creams could provide the nutrients for the optimal wound healing. Steroids could minimize the inflammation always associated with the tissue repair. Silicone sheets, compression garments could flatten the scar, reduce the itching and fade the reddish colour. Surgical lasers could improve the colour by closing the capillaries in the scar tissue. These are available in the best clinics of Dubai. If the origin of the scar is an accident, burn or less careful surgical procedure, one of the options is to remove the scar and replace it with an aesthetically more acceptable one. After the surgery an anti-scar treatment could further improve the quality.

Scarless healing could only happen in our intrauterine life. Studying this process could help the cosmetic surgeons to achieve even better scar in the future. One of the most promising option is to use adult mesenchymal stem cells of the patient – these cells could be injected into the scar and by producing normal collagen they could restore the normal texture and colour.

Always ask your expert plastic surgeon about the different option in order to choose the best possible treatment for your case.

If you have any question regarding the scar correction procedures; call the SHAMMA Clinic to book an appointment – +971 4 349 88 00.