This phase may involve redness, swelling, and tenderness around the incision site. It usually lasts anywhere from a few days to one week. Tissue Formation (2 to 3 Weeks): Once the initial inflammation subsides, your body begins to form new tissue to close the wound.
As scar tissue begins to form, it may appear red, raised, and hard, but over time it fades, flattens, and softens.
Most soft tissue injuries heal without any problems in about six weeks. However, it may take a few months for your symptoms to settle – these can include pain or discomfort, stiffness, decreased strength, and swelling. The injury may take longer to heal if you suffer from diabetes or if you smoke.
You cannot get rid of a keloid scar, but there are treatments that can help improve how it looks and reduce irritation. Treatments may include: steroid injections or cream. silicone dressings or gels.
For best results, you should perform scar massage for at least 10 minutes, twice a day, for six months. You should only stop sooner than that if the scar starts showing signs of infection or you experience intolerable discomfort.
Generally speaking, the body's different tissues (muscle, tendons, ligaments, cartilage, etc) follow the 4 stages of healing which comprise of Bleeding, Inflammation, Proliferation and Remodelling. Through these stages, the injured tissue will be destroyed and replaced by living tissue in the body.
After you suffer an injury, swelling usually worsens over the first two to four days. It can then last as long as three months as the body attempts to heal itself. If the swelling lasts longer than this, your physical therapist or doctor may need to take a closer look to determine the cause of the delayed healing.
Massage, moisturizers, and silicone gel, among other at-home treatments, can also help. A doctor may recommend additional treatment, such as fat grafting or scar revision surgery if the pain persists.
After several weeks, the scar that forms may feel hard, tight, raised, or bumpy. Over time, the scar will become softer, smoother, and less red. Your scar will continue to heal for 12 to 18 months after your surgery.
Keloids occur when collagen buildup creates a larger, puffy-looking scar that grows beyond the boundaries of the surgical wound. Gels, silicone scar sheets and related products might be enough to even out skin color and improve the texture of a superficial surgical scar.
Scar tissue can have a local area of pain when touched or stretched or it can produce a referred pain that feel like that of a nerve which is a constant annoying burn that occasionally turns sharp.
Physical therapy can be a viable option for scar tissue treatment and associated pain. Physical therapists use a combination of active and passive motion to break down and retrain scar tissue. Active motion refers to a patient moving the affected area under his or her own power.
Inflammation occurs within the first 1 – 2 hours after injury, peaks at around 1 – 3 days, and generally lasts for a couple of weeks. During inflammation you may experience some swelling and heat around your injury. This is a completely normal and natural part of the healing process.
The body always responds to an injury with a predictable inflammatory response, as the first step towards healing. Redness, heat, swelling and pain are associated with this first stage.
Vitamin B6 (pyridoxine) is thought to help in cases of mild fluid retention. Good sources of vitamin B6 include brown rice and red meat. Vitamin B5 (pantothenic acid), calcium and vitamin D help the body to excrete excess fluids. Include fresh fruits and low-fat dairy foods in your daily diet.
Above: Massage is an effective tool to help kickstart heaing through enhancing circulation around an affected area. The most common techniques used to reduce swelling include effleurage, deep strokes and lymphatic drainage. Effleurage is often used to help reduce swelling.
A seroma typically looks like a swollen, raised area near your surgical site. The swelling usually forms a distinct bulge or lump under your skin that feels firm to the touch, kind of like a water balloon. You might also notice some mild redness in the area.
Between 3-6 months, the scar is usually at its worst but its appearance should start to improve from now on. Over the following 6-12 months, the scar will gradually become smoother, softer and paler. Although scars are permanent, they can fade over a period of up to two years.
Breast tissue in and of itself can feel somewhat lumpy and sponge-like, so it can be hard to know if what you're feeling is an actual lump or just normal breast tissue. "A breast lump will feel like a distinct mass that's noticeably more solid than the rest of your breast tissue.