Can You Really Get Rid of a Scar After Surgery?

There's no such thing as erasing a mark on your skin. The best a cosmetic surgeon can do is trade it for a thinner, flatter line placed where a waistband or bathing suit hides it — which is exactly what a tummy tuck does with an old vertical C-section scar.

Dr. James Koehler and Kirstin Jarvis get into the honest gap between removing a scar and improving one, and why every operation leaves a mark no matter how skilled the hands that made it. For a cosmetic surgeon, where that line sits and how it heals is the whole job.

They clear up one of the most common mix-ups in scar talk: a keloid is not the same as a thick, raised scar, even though most people — and plenty of physicians — use the words interchangeably. The two heal for different reasons and get treated in completely different ways, from steroid and 5-FU injections to, in stubborn cases, low-dose radiation.

Dr. Koehler explains why location and skin tension decide whether a scar fades to almost nothing or stays visible, when it's worth re-operating versus treating from the outside with lasers and microneedling, and why time is the most underrated healer of all. He tells two stories — including a woman convinced her beautiful breast reduction scars were ruined — that show how much of the scar conversation is really about expectations.

Questions answered by this episode:

Can you completely remove a scar, or just move it somewhere hidden?What's the difference between a keloid and a hypertrophic scar?Why do some scars fade beautifully while others stay raised and thick?How do surgeons treat keloid scars?Do drugstore scar creams work as well as medical-grade silicone gel?When is it worth having a scar surgically revised?How long does it take for a surgery scar to fully fade?Why is a tummy tuck scar sometimes thicker than a scar on the face?Do microneedling and laser treatments help flatten and lighten scars?What should I know about scarring before booking a cosmetic surgery consult?Alabama the Beautiful is the cosmetic surgery podcast co-hosted by Dr. James Koehler and Dr. Vincent Gardner, surgeons with over 2 decades of expertise in cosmetic surgery and their trusty co-host Kirstin, your best friend, confidante, and the snarky yet loveable "swiss army knife" of Eastern Shore Cosmetic Surgery.

Have a question for Dr. Koehler, Dr. Gardner or Kirstin? Record your voicemail at alabamathebeautifulpodcast.com and we'll answer it on the podcast.

Eastern Shore Cosmetic Surgery is located off Highway 98 at