Do stitch scars go away? (2023)

Can a scar from stitches ever go away?

In time, some collagen breaks down at the site of the wound and the blood supply reduces. The scar gradually becomes smoother and softer. Although scars are permanent, they can fade over a period of up to 2 years. It's unlikely they'll fade any more after this time.

These stitches require proper upkeep to ensure that they do not leave scars. However, stitches often leave behind marks along with a scar on the affected area of the skin.

Most scars fade over time and don't cause long-term health problems. How a scar changes depends on its location, size and type. A scar may fade so much that you can barely see it, but it never completely goes away. Some scars cause problems months or years later.

Hypertrophic scars, with their raised, red appearance, may take much longer than a normal scar to fade. For the most part, scars are permanent, but they can be faded using clinically-proven scar therapy products.

He explains that “a scar is actually a bunch of unorganized collagen in the dermal layer of the skin.” Over time, the tissue will try to reorganize, and the scar may appear to soften, but the skin may never completely return to its original state — particularly if the cut extends beyond the epidermis, the skin's outer ...

Scars take time to settle. The lumpiness, puckering and thickening in the scar take 2-3 months to diminish, whilst the redness and pigmentation can take up to 9-12 months to fade. Most scars become flat and pale after 12 months.

It can take up to 12-18 months after your injury or operation for a scar to heal. A normal scar will become darker initially and after a period of time this will start to fade. Dark scars can remain for years or indefinitely in people with darker skin.

[1] subjected normal human skin to elective linear incisions of variable depth, they found that permanent scarring did not occur when the skin injury was less than 0.57 mm deep (i.e., about a third of the thickness of the dermis). However, deeper dermal injuries did result in permanent scars.

Why do I have a scar that won't go away?

A skin wound that doesn't heal, heals slowly or heals but tends to recur is known as a chronic wound. Some of the many causes of chronic (ongoing) skin wounds can include trauma, burns, skin cancers, infection or underlying medical conditions such as diabetes. Wounds that take a long time to heal need special care.

Keep it moist and covered.

“Keeping it moist is best to prevent a scar,” Dr. Khetarpal says. Use petroleum jelly on your wound, and bandage it up to let it heal.

There are a few reasons why a scar might turn dark. For example, if a scar was exposed to sunlight during the healing process, there's a good chance the scar tissue will become pigmented. Dark scars can also be caused by inflammation, poor healing, or the genetics of your skin and how your skin heals.

Scars seem to get worse before they get better. For about six weeks after surgery the scar becomes red, firm and hard. This is the body's way of making a very strong and solid scar. Over the next four months the scar will soften and lose the redness.

Scars can take up to a year to heal completely, with most of the process occurring out of sight. In most cases, the scar will turn from pink to white as the scar heals. The skin will also flatten out in the affected area. This happens because bodies produce scar tissue to mend the damage that has happened.

As your skin continues to heal, the scar will flatten and change color. In time, many flat scars are nearly the same color as your skin. A flat scar may also be paler or slightly darker than your surrounding skin.

Hypertrophic scars are benign and not harmful to a person's general health. They do not develop into skin cancer. A hypertrophic scar will often regress completely between 6 months and 3 years after it first appears.