Why do people get keloids?

Collagen — a protein found throughout the body — is useful to wound healing, but when the body produces too much, keloids can form. Keloid growth might be triggered by any sort of skin injury — an insect bite, acne, an injection, body piercing, burns, hair removal, and even minor scratches and bumps.

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What triggers keloids?

Keloids and hypertrophic scars are caused by cutaneous injury and irritation, including trauma, insect bite, burn, surgery, vaccination, skin piercing, acne, folliculitis, chicken pox, and herpes zoster infection.

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Can keloids go away?

Do keloids go away? Unlike a hypertrophic scar, a keloid doesn't fade with time. To reduce the appearance of a keloid, you need to treat it. When it comes to treatment, no one treatment works best for all keloids.

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Who is prone to keloids?

Keloids are most common in people younger than 30. Black people, Asians, and Hispanics are more prone to developing keloids. Keloids often run in families. Sometimes, a person may not recall what injury caused a keloid to form.

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Why do people get keloids from piercings?

Sometimes, this type of scar may appear after a piercing. A keloid forms due to an overgrowth of fibrous tissue. In response to injury, cells in the skin — called fibroblasts — produce excessive collagen, which leads to the development of a keloid. Keloids can take 3–12 months to develop after the original injury.

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Doctor explains KELOID SCARS including causes, treatment and prevention

29 related questions found

Do keloids on piercings go away?

Keloids on your ear grow slowly. They may take up to 12 months before they become noticeable, and they may continue to grow for years. They'll eventually stop growing, but they won't go away without treatment.

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How do you prevent a keloid on a piercing?

By starting small, you can watch for thickening skin. This is the first sign of a keloid. If the skin in the test area starts to thicken, you want to start wearing a pressure earring or pressure garment immediately. Pressure can prevent the thickening skin from turning into a keloid.

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What is inside a keloid?

Keloid, also known as keloid disorder and keloidal scar, is the formation of a type of scar which, depending on its maturity, is composed mainly of either type III (early) or type I (late) collagen.

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How common are piercing keloids?

Results: Fifty percent (n = 16) of surveyed patients developed a keloid after their first piercing. Twenty surveyed patients developed keloids with subsequent piercings.

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How long do keloids last on piercings?

This could be a sign of a keloid, and they can appear on ears or as a keloid on nose piercings. They typically occur in places where an injury is healing. While they can be unattractive, keloids are rarely harmful. However, if they are not treated, they can continue growing for months and sometimes years.

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How do you flatten a keloid naturally?

There are no proven methods of removing keloid scars naturally. Some clinical studies have shown that onion extract used orally or on the skin might possibly be effective in improving the appearance of keloid scars and reducing itchiness and discomfort.

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What happens if keloid is left untreated?

If left untreated by a dermatologist, a keloid scar can get larger and more visible, so it's important to get treatment earlier, rather than later. And thanks to its texture, it's not easily covered up with concealer, making it even more crucial to treat it as soon as possible.

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Can keloids become cancerous?

In a cohort study in Taiwan, patients with keloids were at an increased risk of developing various forms of cancer -- pancreatic cancer and skin cancer in particular -- when compared to the general population, with an adjusted odds ratio of 1.51 (95% CI 1.39-1.63), according to Kathy Chien-Hui Hong, MD, PhD, of ...

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Does stress cause keloids?

Keloid is considered a fibroproliferative disorder of skin wound healing, and its pathophysiological mechanisms are not fully known. As keloid only occurs in humans in which the psychological chronic stress component is already demonstrated, it is now also reported from the “psychomediation” perspective.

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Does everyone get keloids?

Although anyone can get them, keloids are more common among darker-skinned people. Keloids can be painful or itchy but aren't usually dangerous to a person's health. However, depending on where they are located, they can be a cosmetic concern. Fortunately, there are many treatment options to help remove keloids.

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Can you cut out a keloid scar?

In some instances, a surgeon may recommend removing a large hypertrophic scar or keloid. Keloids that far exceed the margins of the original wound, for example, require removal to allow surgeons to reconstruct the surrounding skin and tissue and restore as much of the underlying structure as possible.

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Is keloid harmful or not?

A keloid scar is a thick raised scar. It can occur wherever you have a skin injury but usually forms on earlobes, shoulders, cheeks or the chest. If you're prone to developing keloids, you might get them in more than one place. A keloid scar isn't harmful to your physical health, but it can cause emotional distress.

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Do keloids flatten over time?

Conclusion: Keloids never completely disappear to leave skin with normal texture, however they can resolve (flatten and soften) so they no longer burden patients in approximately one third of cases. Scars resolving spontaneously do so early in the disease. Those that don't may resolve after many years of treatment.

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Why do keloids form on ear piercings?

Causes. Ear keloids are caused by excessive scar tissue formation from skin injury. The keloid forms when an overgrowth of granulation tissue (type 3 collagen) is then replaced by type 1 collagen.

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Does tea tree oil help with keloids?

Keloids mainly develop due to the overgrowth of scar tissues and are not dangerous. There is no scientific evidence to show that tea tree oil can improve existing keloids.

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How do you know when a keloid is forming?

You'll likely notice one or more of the following, as this scar forms:
  1. Appears slowly. ...
  2. Grows. ...
  3. Causes pain, itch, or burning. ...
  4. Changes color. ...
  5. Darkens after spending time in the sun. ...
  6. Stops growing. ...
  7. Shape of keloids varies. ...
  8. Size differs.

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What is the difference between a piercing bump and a keloid?

Summary. Piercing bumps and keloids are scars that can develop in response to a skin injury. Piercing bumps may blend with your natural skin tone, shrink, or even disappear in time without any treatment at all. Keloids can develop from any scar, including a piercing wound, and become darker over time.

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Can bad earrings cause keloids?

Most of the earrings and piercing jewellery used had metallic backs. The more frequent occurrence of earlobe keloids on the posterior surface of the ear therefore may be associated with the exacerbation of local neurogenic inflammation caused by the metallic backs.

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What is the difference between a keloid and a hypertrophic scar?

Hypertrophic scars are contained within the site of injury and may regress over time, while keloids spread beyond the borders of the initial injury and do not regress. On histological examination, hypertrophic scars tend to have collagen in a wavy, regular pattern, whereas keloids have no distinct pattern of collagen.

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