Scar Revision, what works and what doesn't

[Donna Barnas]

I thought that I would post this since so many here are being cut either from mishandling their sharp toys or from Live Blade Training. I also did not rule out the street encounters that some of you have already survived.

I had a scar revision performed by a plastic surgeon. I thought he was going to lazer it off but the scar wasn't big enough for a lazer. His receptionist made it sound like a simple, inexpensive, quick procedure so I said why not. Well, he took a scapel and made incisions over the scars and sewed them up with a zillion stitches. This plastic surgeon, Niel A. Gordon in Greenwich CT, put incisions where I had surface scars and made them look much worse. His theory is that he thinned them by his technique. He then went onto charge my insurance Co, a large sum for the revision and over a year later submitted a whole new claim. He has since been turned over to my insurance companies fraud division as well as to the CT State Health Department's Fraud department.

I can tell you that his procedure did not work, the theory of thinning the scar, actually made the scar longer and now I have the tiny lines left from the stitches from where he sewed up the incision.

I am now going to try having the scar tatooed which is another procedure that is suppose to fade scars. What Dr. Gordon left me is so awful that I have to do something. I will let you guys know if this tatoo procedure works. This place, tatoos permanent eyeliner, and lipliner onto women. It also uses its procedure for scar removal (camoflauge)and for women who have had mastectomies and had new breasts made from existing tissue, they tatoo in the aerola. So
I will come back on if any of you are interested and let you know if the procedure is inexpensive and if it works.

Who knows, maybe you guys like your scars and removing them is a gal thing.

 

[Smoke]

Donna, I did some dumb stuff is all. About 2 years ago, I chopped 1/2" into my left hand with a Kris Cutlery sword. Slow but steady bleeding with shock and nausea. Next day it was moist and I could see the inside of my hand.

What I should have done was go immediately to the ER (There is only an 8 hr. window for such things) and get stitched. It tooks some months for it to heal, the top skin was numb filled with fluid, hurting when pressed.

My literal one inch scar looked like a shark bite. It's healed now but still is visible to point. I joke that it's a reminder to be careful and that I was lucky I didn't do a draw cut. As well as perhaps another reminder of the street, the baddie would do worse and I'd have to do at least this much damage.

For you purists, I 'defanged' myself.

Anyhow, facial cuts/scars are interesting. I knew a guy who would rather cut the face, thinking it was legally better. However, one guy felt cutting his face/disfiguring would scare the jury. I've been told the absolute worst a face cut on say the cheeks would do would be severing a nerve and making sure a guy couldn't move that side of his face.

[This message has been edited by Smoke (edited 06-26-2000).]

 

[J_Ringo]

Donna:

Sorry to hear that. e-mail on its way.

Here in CA, ANY md. can 'specialize' in plastic surgery, and bill himself as such by taking a short course over a few weekends.

At least this was the state of affairs a year back. I know there was a move to change the laws after too many horror stories.

For anyone considering plastic surgery it helps if the doc in question is board certified, but that's not a 100% guarantee, either.

 

[FNG]

I`ve never thought much about my scars.There were a lot of red angry looking ones with red and white stitch marks.They are faded now.

 

[judge]

Donna, sad to hear you had to make a painful experience with this "MD". I think MDs don´t get the amount of supervision some of them should get. About the tattoo: Is it permanent ink or that stuff that is supposed to fade away after a few years? As far as I know, the semi-permanent ink looks not that great when it is slowly degrading, and does never completely disappear. Make sure you know how it will look like, ask that tatto shop for references (satisfied customers, portfolio etc.). Sorry for sounding like a prick, but bad tatoos aren´t much better than scars. Check out the tattoo section of BME for in-depth knowledge and experiences with skin&ink, there´s scarification info as well. www.bme.freeq.com

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"Peace is not without conflict; it is the ability to cope with conflict" - Leo Giron

 

[SYK]

deleted

 

[Donna Barnas]

Hi Judge,
Yes it will fade after a few years and need to be redone. Plus the woman wants $100 just to do the patch test. Someone emailed me about rubbing lotion in for like 6 months, I heard of that before and I read where it was done with a special oil high in antioxidents. I have some of the oil and others that are high in Vit. C and E so I am going to try that.

SYK,
Yes, I agree on the doctor issue. My mother had a face-lift by this doctor. Gee, I dont know if I should be divulging her secrets but hell no one knows her here. I could swear that her face looks differant. Her nose looks like its a differant shape as if he pulled the skin too tight or something from the bridge. The nose is the most noticable but her entire face looks differant as if the sides of her cheeks got widened. She freaked out while it was in the healing stage cause her face was differant and she had to go on an antidepresant. Its been two years and everything is all healed now and I haven't the heart to tell her that her face looks changed from the lift. She knew it too and she is still on the antidepresants. He did spent a good deal of time with her. He supposidly was one of four doctors in the US performing the latest methods for face lifts and other surgeries.