The role of chemoimmobilization in improving the outcome of scar revision surgery

Abstract

Background: The major goal of scar revision is to make the scar aesthetically more acceptable. The injection of botulinum toxin type A is known to help in improving the outcomes of scars by reducing the tension across the wound edges and by promoting better wound healing. Objective: The aim of this article is to evaluate the efficacy of botulinum toxin injection following scar revision surgeries. Materials and Methods: A prospective, comparative study involving 20 patients with post-traumatic scars over the face was conducted between July 2018 and July 2019. The patients were divided into two groups: group A underwent scar revision surgery followed by BTX injection on the day of suture removal and group B underwent scar revision surgery alone. The photographic assessment was done at the end of a 1-year follow-up, by three blind investigators based on a pre-designed scale to grade improvement. Results: The average grade of improvement of group A (3.02±1.1) was significantly higher when compared with that of group B (2.1±0.8) (P = 0.001). Conclusion: This study demonstrates that the combination treatment of scar revision with BTX injection is very effective in producing aesthetically better scars.