How To Get Rid of Burn Scars

Burn scars usually take a while to completely heal. Depending on the severity of the damage done on the skin, these types of scars become less visible as they change in appearance. There are instances when the skin goes back to its normal color and maintains its usual skin texture. However, some burn scars become elevated and turn pinkish-red in color. These are called hypertrophic scars. In some cases, these scars form keloids, the type of scars that grow bigger than the original size. For burn survivors, apart from total wound healing, one of their prime concerns is to eliminate or fade burn scar.

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How to Remove Burn Scars

To get rid of burn scars, patients may choose between surgical methods and natural burn scar treatments in order to remove burn scars.

Surgical Methods

Dermabrasion and Dermaplaning. These are skin-resurfacing techniques that scrape the top layers of the skin. In dermabrasion, surgeons use a wire brush with diamond particles affixed to a mechanical grip. On the other hand, surgeons use a bladed instrument called dermatome for skin grafting purposes when performing dermaplaning procedures.

Because these only take a few minutes to an hour per session, dermabrasion and dermaplaning are considered outpatient surgery procedures. Patients are normally sedated to numb the skin for resurfacing. Depending on the depth of the burn scar, treatment may be performed in stages.

As with all other types of surgeries, there are some risks involved when undergoing either of the procedures, such as changes in skin color that may result to a permanently darker or lighter skin tone than the original skin complexion. It could also result to a freckled appearance. In addition, exposure to the sun after a resurfacing session or before skin is completely healed can also bring about lasting skin tone transformation. Apart from these, other risk factors include keloid formation, hypertrophic scarring, and skin infections.

Laser Surgery. With the latest laser technology available, burn patients can still achieve the smooth complexion they once had. Initially, having red skin after a session is a normal circumstance as the redness disappears on its own when the skin is completely healed.

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Patients may choose between ablative or non-ablative therapy. Ablative laser therapy treats the outer skin layer and aids in tightening the dermis, thus, stimulating new skin cell growth. Popular procedures include e-Yag laser resurfacing and double laser treatment. On the other hand, non-ablative laser treatment penetrates into the scar tissue, thus, it entails lesser downtime for the patient. Accepted methods include pulsed-dye laser and fractional laser. Of the two, the latter seems to be a better option because the outer skin is left untouched and recovery period is faster.

Alternative Treatment Methods

Aloe Vera Gel. Helps heal chemical burns and lighten burn scars.

Burn Scar Cream. Use of special creams for burn scars is also effective in removing scarring. Products such as Revitol scar cream, Mederma, and Scarprin are popular burn scar creams due to their silicon content.

Preventing Burn Scars

Not all burn scars can be treated at home. Depending on the maturity of the burn scar, it is best to have a professional check the extent of skin damage. However, for minor burns, following are home remedies and answers to the question, how to reduce burn scars, that patients can do to prevent scars due to burns.

- Apply cold water onto the affected skin.

- Apply turmeric and water paste liberally on the burns to speed up healing. Turmeric is considered a natural antiseptic herb, thus, it is believed that wounds heal faster when turmeric is applied.

- Cover the wound with egg whites, which is known to alleviate pain and heal burn scars.

- First degree burns heal faster when soaked in cold milk or cold water. These also prevent the formation of pus or blisters.

- Rubbing vitamins A and E on burn scars, as well as consuming them in capsule form, facilitate faster healing process.