The word scar can encompass a wide variety of scars of all shapes and sizes.

Scars can be the result of trauma,surgery, burns or disease. They can be present anywhere on the body and may be flat, raised or discoloured .The way a scar heals depends on various factors such as situation of the scar, cause of the scar, skin colour ,depth of the wound and blood supply to the wound.The primary reason for opting to revise a scar is when the scar bothers the patient enough.

Depending on the scar itself, the type of surgery and anaesthesia is determined.

I prefer to do most small scars under local anaesthesia with mild sedation . This is usually a day care procedure and the patients can go to work with a small dressing the next day or even the same day if no sedation is used.Keloids are usually treated with an injection of steroids into the scar followed by a tight compression garment.

However larger scars may need more complicate operations such as Z plasty, skin grafting or even flap surgery.

This could range from local anaesthesia with or without sedation to a full general anaesthesia for larger scars.

Most scars can e done on a day care basis, however I prefer to keep patients undergoing more complicated operations in the hospital for 2-3 days.

Although most scar revisions do very well without any complications, it is prudent to keep an eye out for wound infection, bleeding , ananesthesia complications or the recurrence of the scar.

The patient should follow instructions of the surgeon to keep the scar clean and care of the scr. Normal duties shoul d be resumed gradually.

Primarily I impress upon my patients that the best plastic surgeon in the worl can only REDUCE the scar.IT CAN NEVER COMPLETELY DISSAPEAR.

The healing of the scar depends on surgical skills, colour of the patient, direction and blood supply to the scar, underlying disease and absence of post operative complications.If initially the scar looks worse than before I only say-patience-it will heal in time and may fade almost completely .

Most scar revisions heal very well and the result is almost always an improvement on the original. But as I always tell my patients -man cannot recreate the perfection that God had created!As long as the expectations of the patient are realistic this surgery usually has a happy outcome