About Face

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About Face

Chapter Five Accidents Emergency Care Minimizing Scarring Scar Repair Excision Scar Transformation Dermabrasion

Dermabrasion

Dermabrasion is used for accidental scarring much as I described in detail in the chapter on scarring caused by acne. If a scar is a little depressed, we can dermabrade the surrounding skin to make it level. Or we can dermabrde the scar itself it is higher than the surrounding skin - shave it down a bit. Dermabrasion is often best combined with some collagen injections, to completely smooth out the affected area. This might, for example, be the solution for a scar that is in a relaxed skin tension line in the forehead or cheek regional aesthetic units. Almost all facial scars can be made smoother and more level with dermabrasion.

There have been such advances in our ability to camouflage scarring that it gives me pleasure to say one of my most satisfied patients is a woman who survived a near-fatal car accident. She came to me with ghastly scars on her forehead, caused by wounding when she went through the windshield. It took two years to complete a series of scar repositions before we got the jagged, uneven gashes moved into the horizontal lines of her natural forehead wrinkles. The scars that couldn’t be moved were dermabraded for a smooth finish. Today, this particular patient’s scars are barely noticeable. Cases like hers are what keep facial cosmetic surgeons wedded to their work; we all love a happy ending.

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