Steroid injection for Keloid

Hello,
I have a keloid on my chest and the dermatologist has advised steroid injections starting from next week.
I am a little scared about the injections. My question is: Is the process of injection painful? I am apprehensive about the pain when the needle is being injected into the keloid. Are the needles thin enough to be pain-free or is it going to be painful? I very much appreciate a response.
Best regards.
Ravi.

[BhumikaMD]

Hi,

In an expert's hands, minimal pain from the procedure is noted while relief from the pain of the inflammation occurs rapidly.

You could discuss with your doctor about the injections and whether you would need local anesthesia. The treatment of choice for keloids is usually an injection of corticosteroid drugs such as cortisone directly into the lesion.

These injections cause the keloid to become atrophic, or thinner, and are repeated every three to four weeks until the keloid has been resolved to the individual's satisfaction. Other therapies include laser treatment or radiation therapy, and topical treatments are undergoing study.

Let us know if you need any other information.

Regards.

[Rebecca_jQ]

hi,
im 16 years old teenage..last year i got injured from hot water..after that recovered from the injured after 1 month but my shoulder....my doctor already told me that my wound will leave scar...when the time for check up in hospital,doctor ask me to inject my keyloid scar with steroid...and i have to go to inject the keyloid every month....its hurt...but recently i didnt go to inject the keyloid scar for 4 month.....is there will give an bad effect of my keloid scar?i appreciate with  a response...thank you!!
Rebecca(malaysia)

[mehakchadha]

hi iam mehak iam suffering for  skin problem(keliod) since 6 years. now it is a mature keliod.i am sacred of the injection pain but my  doc. said there is not other solution to it. my doc has prescribed tricort injection is this ok??i  have read so many articles and ppl said that even after injection it reappear.please give me right guidance so that i get rid off it.iam sared of injection pain  too much and is it really re re appeared??:( :( ( i have  so many question) please reply.. waiting...

[jjenjen]

I also have a persistent keloid located on my chest that developed from a chicken pox scar 10 years ago.  I have since had several Kenalog injections that improved my condition greatly.  There is no more pain, sensitivity, or tenderness at the keloid site and there has been significant improvement visually as well.  It is much much flatter and there has been a noticable reduction in redness.

As for the pain of the injection itself, in my opinion it was really painful and very hard to endure.  It is possibly due to the location of the keloid scar (center of the chest above the bony sternum).  But I will say that it was quite worth it.  I recommend taking a pain killer an hour or so before the injection and to apply a cold pack to the site prior to the injection to numb the skin.  I also recommend bringing something to hold/squeeze, maybe even someone's hand.  These to three things are very helpful!!

Of course I'm not sure about the long term affects of the injections but I can definitely say that I've received many compliments on the improvement and that I no longer wake up in the middle of the night in excruciating pain from my scar.

[jjenjen]

I did a series of about 5 injections every 2-3 months approx five years ago and haven't had any shots since but things are still looking good.

[portia88]

I have several keloids on my back and one on my chest and behind my ears.  I have been getting injections and although they are very painful it help with making the keloid shrink.  I dont know where they came from they just started popping up on my body.  I have about four on each side of my shoulder and one on my chest which i had surgery on.  That was a bad idea.  I was only 11 and the keloid came back even bigger than before.

[Ayush03]

Hi
I had steroid injections for the first time 1 week ago and the improvement on my keloid is astounding especially after 1 week only!  I am also using Mederma on the scar which seems to be working very well.  I am also rubbing ice on my scar, patting it dry and then using Mederma over it. I then use Micropore tape over the Mederma and it seems to work very well.  

[worriedpatient01]

I have had 2 keloids at the back of my ear lobes and have had them surgically removed. After the removal, there were some tissues still left and the Doctor requested that I have steroid jabs. However, after my first session today, I am very skeptical about going for the second jab next week; The jab sure hurt, however, it's been 7 hours since the jab and even though the pain has subsided, my ear lobe is still swollen and the worst thing is that my ear lobe feels numb. Can any experts tell me if this is a normal reaction to the steroid injection?

[saritobi]

Hi I had steroid shots two days ago for my keloids. The pain was very bad. It did not last long though. very painful only when doctor inject the substance into the keloid.  Will continue with treatment. My focus is stoping the itching and lancing pains and also wearing low cut blouses. :-)

[marydavix2007yahoocom213]

i had a keloid and has been on kenaloid injection fsince september last year 2009.
it was realy a hell
this was on my chest.
i rejected surgery.
but now it has gone my last checkup will be 15th september 2010.
but, during this time my mestral cycle was disturbed.
but today it has corected.

[febiola]

I had a keloid scar on my nose betwen eyes seem like everytime i looked on the mirror all i see is this keloid first, sooo annoying the keloid is about half inch wide it was really red and stubborn big fat keloid ,so i apply silicon gel ,mederma during the day and aspirin paste before i went to bed .after few days apply aspirin paste the keloid is flatten and the fuss coming out and it finally shrink, i continue it with applying tea tree oil every night before bed ,my keloid is now flatten and getting unnoticible on few days right before i'm scheduling for the kortisone injection thank's god aspirin paste works!!!

[buttner]

in other words... YES... THE KELOID INJECTIONS ARE VERY VERY PAINFUL!!!

i had two keloids, one behind my ear (caused by an ear-ring) and on on the side of my face due to having a mole removed.
I had steroid injections MULTIPLE TIMES! (roughly 6-7 times) (which was advised by a specialist plastic surgeon who i had seen)
once he had done the injection, it hurt slightly as expected, and the keloid had temporarily grown to DOUBLE the size. (lasted the rest of the day)

but as soon as i got back in the car on the way back from the hospital.. the pain was immense! honest to god, it was the worst pain in my life and i have had kidney failure and 6 broken ribs which punctured my lung! oops forgot to mention my burst appendix which nearly killed me..

anyway.. aside from all that.. it was truly the WORST pain IMAGINABLE!

I later had the keloids surgically removed (as the injections had no effect) and afterwards had the wound injected one final time with the steroid injection.. and now (3 years afterwards.. the keloids have not returned)

So my advice to everyone with keloids.. DO NOT GET THE STEROID INJECTIONS! theyre useless and the pain is immense! get them surgically removed!

But if you do wish to take the steroid injections.. if the pain gets unbearable.. DO NOT get angry and figity, DO NOT try to do things to take your mind off of it..
Coming from personal experience.. to decease the pain, just basically sit in your armchair, RELAX, and watch television! or listen to calm music. dont let anything disturb you, because this will just increase your blood flow which will agitate your keloids even more!, and it will become VERY VERY PAINFUL!

Thank You for reading,  and remember to get them surgically removed! if not, and you go for the injections.. remember to RELAX and stay CALM!

[speed1]

The last post is 100% accurate! I just got my keloid scar injected with cotezone and it HURTS LIKE HECK!!! This is my 3rd time having the injection. This time half the keloid got smaller and the other half looks like its getting bigger.

[ourkez100]

I first had keloids on my ear lobes from getting my ears pierced at 11yrs-old. After a few years the scars were so large they were surgically removed. Then a year or two later began returning and was recommended steroid injections. I had a fairly long course (about 8 or 9 visits, 6weeks apart) of steroid (the strongest version in Britain is called Kenalog) but it worked completely and there is no recurrance. As an older teenager I then had another piercing which soon scarred, and I am now part way through treatment with steroid injections again.

To all those scared of the pain - yes it is uncomfortable and stings, but it's over within minutes. And it can be sore and swolen for abut 24hours afterwards and throb, but using ice and a painkiller will help. It is certainly NOT the worst pain I have ever experienced. And the results are well worth it.

If you are having steroid injections you have to get them regularly and if you miss one or two appointments, it will set you back. An experienced doctor won't inject too often (no more than once a month) incase the surrounding healthy tissue atrophies (breaks down).

If keloid scars bother you, and they keep getting larger definitely consider steroid injections as they have worked brilliantly in my experience. But don't be dis-heartened - stick with it, as I say - my first scars took over a year to finally stop growing.

[ashokmakwana14]

I have a keliod on my chest, friends can you tell me keloid can remove by injection permanetly?

Ashok Makwana
Mumbai.

[Ariel15]

I have a keloid in the middle of my chest and several on my back, and I have gotten them injected twice. I am very afraid of needles but my advice is to relax, look away, and it really doesn't even hurt too badly! The 1st time I was surprised at how bareable it was. It feels like a ***** and it only lasts a second. Honestly, the hardest part was the fear as I saw the Dr. getting the needle ready. The results are so worth it!