Scar prevention?

Synonymous said:

My mother just tonight had a bit of an accident - she tripped and fell on
the sidewalk, and the bridge of her glasses cut deeply (down to the bone)
into her nose. The cut is clean and relatively small, but, like I said, it
was deep, and it did require six sutures.

She naturally is extremely concerned about scarring on this area of her
face. What would you folks recommend she use to minimize the scarring, and
when would you recommend she use it?

Facial cuts are almost always sutured by a plastic surgeon, who
would have taken care to minimize the scarring during the
suturing. Don't mess up his work.

LEAVE IT ALONE! More scars are enhanced by well-meant application
of various substances to fresh wounds than are diminished by
them. Keep it dry, lightly covered and DO NOTHING until the
stitches are out. Keep her glasses off that area.

Clean it gently with sterile saline on a sterile gauze if needed,
and apply any topical antibiotics the doctor may have prescribed.
All wounds will be slightly inflamed as part of the healing
process, but that usually peaks in a day and then diminishes. If
there is redness and swelling that is increasing, go back to the
doctor.

Rubbing oils, lotions, potions, creams, butter, etc. into an
unhealed wound is asking for an infection and infections usually
cause swelling and increased scar tissue production. Forcing
foreign matter (sterile or not) into an unhealed wound can cause
the wound to heal over the foreign matter and leave a lumpy scar.

ABOVE ALL, do not swab the wound with plant matter, such as that
damned "aloe vera" leaf. The bacteria that grow on seemingly
healthy plants can cause rapidly fatal invasive infections.
(look up pseudomonas infections ... nasty and extremely hard to
treat).

AFTER the stitches are out, protect the scar from sun (sunscreen,
sunblock, a hat) for a year or so to prevent the new skin cells
from burning and hyperpigmenting. If the area itches, rubbing
cocoa butter or any lubricating substance (preferably a cosmetics
grade cream) into the area will help. This reportedly also
relaxes the threads of scar tissue and helps avoid puckering.

AVOID highly aromatic oils because they are likely to cause local
irritation on the new skin (it's brand new, thin and the
proverbial "baby's bottom" kind of skin) and can make the area
inflamed and the scar more prominent.

Scars change over time, and within a year it should have
"matured", shrunk and be nearly invisible.

Tsu

--
To doubt everything or to believe everything
are two equally convenient solutions; both
dispense with the necessity of reflection.
- Jules Henri Poincaré

In said:

She naturally is extremely concerned about scarring on this area of her
face. What would you folks recommend she use to minimize the scarring, and
when would you recommend she use it? Thank very much for any advice and
help.

Vitamin A creme, vitamin E creme, and *lots* of rubbing once
the wound heals. The cremes may or may not make a difference
aside from being lubricants, but the rubbing is absolutely
essential.

FWIW, my daughter had sinus surgery behind the left eye a
few years ago which left a scar just above and medial of
the eyelid. I must have spend hundreds of hours rubbing
that scar, but it's all but invisible now.

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end

I was in a car wreck about 20 years ago, I had over 200 stitches to my
face. A plastic surgeon came to the hospital at 2 am.

I can't really tell where the scars are.

Of course, in 20 years, wrinkles are difficult to tell from scars.

Jerry