Scar revision - what would you do?

[Sunnyday14558]

We’re considering a scar revision for our three year old. They have a scar is on their face which is very difficult for us to handle day to day.

A private surgeon has told us it should respond very well to treatment and has given us two options:

1. have the revision done now under general anaesthetic. He needs to use non dissolving stitches so these will need to be taken out after 5 days.
2. wait until he’s old enough to have the procedure under local.

Im not sure if he’ll cooperate with stitch removal which is concerning me at this age. If we wait, I’m worried the local procedure will be scary and/or make him conscious of his scar.

Any thoughts/experiences would be much appreciated

Have it done now.

I had a facial scar as a toddler. Better to give it as much time as possible to heal. I do remember having stitches while I was awake, but it's not something that has ever bothered me. It wasn't my favourite day ever, but it wasn't traumatic.

It's difficult to notice where the scar is now - even though it was really obvious when I was little.

What do you mean by it’s hard for you to handle day to day? Does it cause any issues for him? I’d be reluctant to put my children under a general anaesthetic without it being completely necessary. Scars can improve a lot over time and also look less obvious as people get older.

Does he have to have it done under local when he’s older? I say this because I’ve had a skin graft to my head/face. I had the option to have it done as local or GA (I opted for GA). I’m a 40 year old woman. I cannot imagine that GA wouldn’t be an option for a child, even an older one.

Also I would be quite resistant to doing any more chopping and changing on such young delicate skin. If they are doing stitches, there will be a scar, just a different sort. I assume it must be quite a deep scar and you’ve done all the scar minimisation stuff, like silicone gel, massage, etc. They may offer you some camouflage to cover it for now and then you can buy time to think. The challenge is that there are no guarantees. My scar on my face should not be as bad as it is, but I got an infection after surgery and that meant it healed in a wonky way. The more you mess with it, the more chance there is of similar.

But a large, deep scar I can definitely understand wanting to get rid of. It does attract attention and people do ask questions and stare. You can teach him how to respond and deal with that attention, but I do get where you’re coming from. I would just make sure you trust the surgeon and their work. That would be my main advice.

They have a scar is on their face which is very difficult for us to handle day to day

I think you need to work on this first as he will definitely pick up on it, no matter how well you think you are hiding it.

I think you need to understand what scarring will be left after they have done it as there probably will be something. I had a large burn to my leg as a child and my parents opted for me not to have a skin graft. It has faded hugely as I have gotten older but if it had been on my face I am sure they would have chosen to have it done.

Inclined to agree
if it isn’t bothering HIM, it shouldn’t be bothering you.

Do they not use dissolvable stitches?

Younger the better for healing so I'd have it done now.