Intralesional excision as a surgical strategy to manage keloid scars: what’s the evidence?

Abstract

Lay SummaryKeloid scars are a particularly challenging subset of scars to treat successfully. Complete (extralesional) removal and radiotherapy represent one of the most efficacious combined modalities for treatment; nevertheless, a number of scar services offer the option of partial (intralesional) removal for keloid scars frequently in conjunction with steroid therapy. This study was undertaken to find out how effective partial removal of keloids is in clinical practice. Based on the available literature, there is limited evidence that this approach can provide reliable long-term results; emerging data on the scar forming activity of different parts of keloids as well as mechanical factors contributing towards keloid growth fail to support partial scar removal techniques for this subset of scars.