Keloids are raised areas on your skin made up of scar tissue. Certain people are susceptible to developing keloids, but they usually aren't dangerous to your child's health. If your child has keloid scars, several different treatment options are available. Talk with your child's doctor about the possible treatments for keloids.
Causes
Although there's no clear cause of keloids, they appear to occur when scar tissue overgrows and continues to grow even after a wound heals, explains the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Your child can have keloid scars on his or her back and shoulders, earlobes, chest or scalp. Your child may develop keloids from chickenpox, burns, wounds, cuts, piercings and even vaccination injections, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Risk Factors
If your child is over the age of 10 and is Asian, African American or Hispanic, she's at a higher risk of developing keloids, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Having relatives in the family who also develop keloid scars and having deep or severe wounds can also increase your child's risks for keloids. Keloids are most common in African American women and girls, many of whom have a condition involving chronic keloids called keloidosis, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center.
Complications
Aside from being unsightly, keloids can also be painful. Keloids can cause burning, itching and soreness or tenderness, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Children who are prone to keloids can even develop them from more minor cuts. They may develop keloids from other medical conditions such as folliculitis, which is caused by a bacterial infection in the hair follicles and involves sometimes-severe hair loss, the Mayo Clinic notes.
Treatments
One common keloid treatment involves monthly corticosteroid injections into the scar tissue to inhibit the collagen growth, shrink the scar tissue and relieve the pain, says the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. A health-care professional usually administers the corticosteroid injections throughout a period of six months. Another keloid treatment is cryotherapy, which involves freezing the scar tissue to remove it, notes the University of Maryland Medical Center. Laser and radiation treatments are also sometimes used to remove keloids. Compression dressings and other treatment methods involving external pressure on the keloid scar tissue can help to flatten the keloid over the course of three months to one year. In some cases, keloids require surgical removal. Unfortunately, surgical removal can cause an even larger keloid in some cases.
Considerations
Even after a keloid-removal treatment, your child's keloid could re-grow, notes the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. Certain treatments may help to prevent recurrences, however. These include imiquimod cream, interferon-alfa injections and intralesional fluorouracil. Some people can develop very large keloids that could impair their mobility, depending upon the location of the scar tissue, and keloids can cause social or psychological problems for children if they cause disfigurement, says the University of Maryland Medical Center.
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