WHAT IS A KELOID?

A keloid scar is a special case of a scar. Keloids are firm, rubbery lesions, reddish or darkly colored, or shiny, hard pink-dome shaped lumps. They can result from injury to the skin or may form spontaneously. They often grow, and although harmless, non-contagious, and usually non-painful, they can be a cosmetic problem.





Occurrence





Keloids form within the scar tissue. Wound collagen, used in wound repair tends to overgrow the area sometimes producing a lump many times the size of the original scar. Although usually at the site of injury, keloids can spontaneously occur. They can occur at the site of a piercing and have been found on earlobes, eyebrows, the chest and other sites of piercings. They can occur as a result of severe acne or chickenpox scarring. They can also be caused by infection at a wound site, repeated trauma to an area, excessive skin tension during wound closure or a foreign body in a wound. They do not go away. They tend to recur after excision. They affect both sexes equally although the incidence in young female patients has been reported to be higher than in young males, probably reflecting the greater frequency of earlobe piercing among women. There is a fifteen times higher frequency of occurrence in people of color. Black skin is most likely to develop keloids.

WHAT IS A KELOID?
a Keloid is a scar that keeps growing after the original wound is healed, creating a raised scar or large "bumps" of skin where the wound was.

bougainvillea