What will the scar be like after Tattoo Removal?

Plastic surgeons use meticulous technique to make the wound closure as neat as possible and stitches are typically buried so as to avoid train-track stitch marks. Orienting scars to follow natural skin creases and contours is beneficial. Supporting the healing wound with adhesive tapes for 6 weeks after surgery is also helpful in achieving a neat scar. Usually, a scar treated in this way will be red and thin for a few weeks and then it will fade and spread slightly over the subsequent 3-6 months. The end result will be a flat soft scar approximately 5mm wide and very slightly paler than adjacent skin.

Despite this, scar healing biology varies between individuals and, indeed in the same person, scars will behave differently depending particularly upon age and the location of the scar. If you are prone to making thick scars (‘scar hypertrophy’ or ‘keloid’ scar), you may well suffer from the same problem if you have surgery. Teenagers, young adults, red-heads and Afro-Caribbeans tend to make thicker scars. The shoulder and the cleavage/sternal area of the chest are also more prone to thick scars. If the scar splits slightly before it has healed or if it gets infected, this may also contribute to a thickening. If scar thickening does occur, there are options to treat it.