Piercing Bump vs. Keloid

Piercing bump: The first thing we should know, for our peace of mind, is that those little bumps that come out where the hole is are not keloids. Although we commonly call them that, they are hypertrophic scars. Dr. Virginia Sánchez, an expert dermatologist, explains the difference.

“Keloids are disproportionately large scars generated by the skin’s repair mechanism. They can appear due to a skin injury or spontaneously, but they always exceed the limits of the wound that caused it. What happens with piercings is called a hypertrophic scar. It is bulky and hard but does not exceed the dimensions of the injury that caused it.”

Therefore, we should not be alarmed believing that we have a keloid problem when a new piercing hole becomes hard and bulging. It is only a scar and can come out even if there is no previous infection. And yes, there is a solution.

Treatments to Eliminate that Uncomfortable Bulge – Piercing

The expert consulted affirms that there is no specific cause to explain these hypertrophic scars in our piercings. “It is multifactorial and above all unknown, although it is much more common in young people. It can come out with or without previous infection. Sometimes they come out spontaneously due to a pimple or a bite and sometimes in surgical wounds.”

Please do not panic. Because their origin is unknown does not make it impossible to eliminate them. And although, according to Dr. Virginia Sánchez, “the best treatment is patience because most improve over time,” these are the medical treatments she recommends to get the lump out of our lives in the blink of an eye.

• Vascular laser: helps to stop its growth in the initial phase, when the lump has just appeared.
• Corticosteroids can be topical or infiltrated into the lesion. Helping reduce its size and improving the aesthetic appearance, if they are visible. piercing.
• Silicone patches– may be recommend in some cases to slow down growth.

There are also other medical recommendations, such as surgery or radiotherapy. But the expert and head of service at the HM Sanchinarro Hospital believe that they are “less effective and more problematic.” However, we recommend always consult a doctor before choosing any of these alternatives in any of the cases.

Take Note, If what you Want is to Avoid an Infection

If you have just made the hole. The person who has been in charge of doing it will have given you instructions to clean it and take care of it safely. However, we have asked our expert dermatologist for advice to eliminate all doubts.

Dr. Virginia Sánchez recommends applying soapy Betadine three days before the piercing to reduce the number of bacteria in the area when making the hole. Once done, according to her, the right thing to do is treat the injury with Betadine and antibiotic ointment alternately.