Forehead Rug Burn Help!

[botbot253]

I am an 18 year old male and I scraped my forehead pretty badly. I was drunken wrestling and face planted into the ground. The scrape was pretty bad, about an inch wide and the skin completely came off. I cleaned the wound and applied neosporin and after about 2 weeks it completely healed. However, the area of abrasion is now white. This is noticeable and is quite ugly because it just doesn't match the skin on my face. Is there anything I can do to help speed up the healing process or is it permanently hypopigmented?

[botbot253]

It is almost been a month and the slightly red/pink area is still visible, but there is no pain. Should  I be worried about it?

[botbot253]

Thanks for the kind response. To this day it is still slightly red/pink in the center and the skin surrounding it is still white. How much longer should I wait before I ask for an examination? I asked my personal doctor over email and she said it was just the lack of melanin in the skin and that time will heal it. She also said a check up is not necessary. However, I don't want to wait 2 months only to find out that I could have done something to speed up the process. There is no pain nor is there any oozing of any liquid so I don't think it is infected...

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
It can be due to post inflammatory hypopigmentation. Usually it goes away on its own after exposure to the sun. Creams like  Elidel cream or Protropic can be used on these hypopigmented  areas but at such a young age it is not advisable to use them . If the symptoms still persist then  you can talk to your dermatologist about laser-assisted chemabrasion(LACA).

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.

[botbot253]

Ugh it is so ugly and Im really self-conscious about it... So I'll have to just wait it out and then tan it? It won't heal by itself?

[Caryopteris]

This is new baby skin and you need to use sun screen to let it mature  before you let it tan.  You could experiment with foundation or bronzer to cover it, but makeup is an art and getting the color right is tricky.