Microneedling improves appearance of surgical scars, especially when done early

ANI |
Updated: Aug 31, 2022 20:20 IST

Philadelphia (Pennsylvania) [US], August 31 (ANI): A process generally known as micro-needling, when carried out quickly after surgical procedure, can enhance the ultimate appearance of surgical scars, with one of the best outcomes obtained when carried out inside six to seven weeks.
The advantages of micro-needling have been researched in a research printed within the September difficulty of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, the official medical journal of the American Society of Plastic Surgeons (ASPS). Wolters Kluwer publishes the journal as half of the Lippincott portfolio.
This is in distinction to the “typical knowledge” that therapies to enhance the appearance of surgical scars must be delayed for as much as a yr, in response to new analysis by Casey Gene Sheck, DO, and colleagues at Claytor/Noone Plastic Surgery in Bryn Mawr, Pa., led by R. Brannon Claytor, MD, Chief of Plastic Surgery at Main Line Health. “Our findings suggest that restarting the therapeutic course of with micro needling 6 weeks after surgical procedure is an choice to reinforce the ultimate outcomes of postoperative scarring,” the researchers write.
‘Paradigm shift’ on preventive approaches to enhance scarring
Microneedling is a non-invasive remedy for enhancing the appearance of the pores and skin in a range of conditions, together with power pimples scars. After the pores and skin has been numbed, an influence handpiece with needles of various sizes is used to type microscopic channels within the pores and skin.
Microneedling, often known as “minimally invasive percutaneous collagen induction,” works by stimulating the physique’s pure therapeutic parts, resembling collagen and elastin. Microneedling or different therapies to enhance the appearance of surgical scars are sometimes postponed till the scar has absolutely grown, which takes between 6 and 12 months. Dr Sheck and colleagues investigated an alternate technique that used micro-needling within the early levels of the therapeutic course of with the intention to reactivate the therapeutic pathway.

Microneedling outcomes
The research comprised 25 ladies who had surgical scars from plastic/pores and skin surgical procedure therapies resembling benign lesion excision, facelifts, or tummy tucks. Microneedling was performed on every affected person, with the primary remedy carried out 6 and 16 weeks after surgical procedure. The second and third therapies happened 4 and eight weeks later.
Based on three completely different standardised assessments, the sufferers’ scar appearance improved considerably after micro needling. For instance, the typical rating on the Patient and Observer Scar Scale (POSAS, which has a variety of 6 to 60, with decrease scores indicating higher appearance) lowered from 23.7 previous to micro-needling to 11.7 at follow-up (2 months after the final remedy).
The researchers additionally examined the outcomes of people who started micro needling sooner, 6 to 7 weeks following surgical procedure, vs later, 13 to 16 weeks. The earlier remedy group improved its POSAS scores “way more”: from 16.8 to eight.1, in comparison with 26.1 to 14.2 within the latter remedy group. The outcomes had been comparable for sufferers of diverse ages and with scars on the torso vs the face.
New recommendation improves outcomes
“While extra research is required to completely analyse this discovering,” Dr Sheck and colleagues write, “it undoubtedly constitutes a considerable paradigm shift in scar remedy.” “As a prophylactic measure, sufferers and surgeons desirous about maximising scar administration might elect for early intervention with micro needling previous to the event of undesired scars.”
Contrary to standard knowledge, the brand new research reveals that early micro needling – administered in the course of the late proliferation/early maturation interval of therapeutic – can considerably enhance final scar appearance. The enchancment might be attributed to the restart of the therapeutic course of at a time when collagen manufacturing has begun to decrease. (ANI)