Scars

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Scars are a natural part of the healing process and they can happen both inside and outside the body. Visible scars sometimes form after the skin has been broken, but you can also have scars on your internal organs, for example where you have a torn a muscle or where a cut has been made during surgery.

When a wound or injury has happened, and there is a break in some of the tissue in the body, the body heals it by producing more of a substance called collagen. This is a protein and it builds up at the place where the tissue is broken, eventually helping to close it. Collagen continues to be pumped into this part of the body for years after the original wound, which is why the scar will gradually become smoother and softer. Scars on the skin can take up to two years to fade, but after this time it is unlikely that they will fade any more.

Certain areas of the body are more likely to have scars than others. The knees and shoulders often have more visible scars, because during the healing process they need to move and stretch a lot. Darker skin is also more likely to scar.

Sometimes abnormal scars develop. A hypertrophic scar is a large scar that may form when a large area of skin is missing, or if a wound becomes infected. A keloid is an overgrowth of tissue, when too much collagen is produced at the site of the wound and the scar keeps growing even after the wound has healed.