Keloid Skin Flap Retention and Resurfacing in Facial Keloid Treatment.

OBJECTIVE

Facial keloids commonly occur in young patients. Multiple keloid masses often converge into a large lesion on the face, representing a significant obstacle to keloid mass excision and reconstruction. We describe a new surgical method that excises the keloid mass and resurfaces the wound by saving the keloid skin as a skin flap during facial keloid treatment.

METHODS

Forty-five patients with facial keloids were treated in our department between January 2013 and January 2016. Multiple incisions were made along the facial esthetic line on the keloid mass. The keloid skin was dissected and elevated as a skin flap with one or two pedicles. The scar tissue in the keloid was then removed through the incision. The wound was covered with the preserved keloid skin flap and closed without tension. Radiotherapy and hyperbaric oxygen were applied after surgery. Patients underwent follow-up examinations 6 and 12 months after surgery.

RESULTS

Of the 45 total patients, 32 patients were cured and seven patients were partially cured. The efficacy rate was 88.9%, and 38 patients (84.4%) were satisfied with the esthetic result.

CONCLUSION

We describe an efficacious and esthetically satisfactory surgical method for managing facial keloids by preserving the keloid skin as a skin flap.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE IV

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