Effective time for Vitamin E oil

[mmhce]

How long after HT surgery can Vitamin E oil have an effect on reducing the size of the donor scar?

 

I.e. can one apply Vitamin E oil a year after the HT surgery and expect to see results?

 

Thank you.

[EpilepticSceptic]

BE VERY CAREFUL APPLYING VITAMIN E OIL TO THE SCAR !!!!!!!

 

First of all, make sure of the CONCENTRATION !!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

If it's above 20,000 IU then DO NOT USE IT !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I was very lucky because it wasn't until day 15 that I ran out of the low concentration and bought some 28,000 IU E oil at Rite Aid. This stuff is like crazy glue !!!!!!!

 

Had I applied this high concentration to my scar and recipient area 4 days post-op I am 100% CERTAIN that it would have done more harm than any good. It's so thick that it can trap germs and force them to absorb into the wound, and then you could easily get a nasty infection!

 

I recommend cosmetic grade Emu Oil for the scar. This stuff is very light and has really worked well for me.

[wb280]

ES, you mean those with 28k IU and above are detrimental? Did any physician indicate so or your personal experience?

 

I did use some 28k IU and i do agree its slightly sticky but crazy glue? not really!

 

I will ask my doc abt it but so far, my scar is healing nicely but i am 2 months post op so i am keeping my fingers crossed though i aint too concerned to be honest as i did not feel any pain or irritation or whatsoever.

[PP2]

Just curious, what's the purpose of applying oil over the scar? Pro's and Cons?

[mmhce]

Just curious, what's the purpose of applying oil over the scar? Pro's and Cons?

 

 

It helps diminish the propensity for hypertrophic scarring.

 

Cons: It reduces the healing time, since healing intrinsically requires the deposition of collagen, but too much collagen, too quickly leads to hypertrophic scarring.

[Dr. William Lindsey]

MMHCE is correct. In my experience, and more importantly, in the peer reviewed medical literature, there is often a "golden time" for addressing scar problems. That is between 6 weeks and 6 months out from the injury, even if the injury is surgery.

 

So I tell ALL patients to come in at 4 weeks out from their suture removal. The reason is that if they are not having problems 5 weeks out from their surgery, I have pretty good confidence they won't likely have a big scar issue. Occasionally I am wrong on that but not often. And if there is a problem, usually just a very conservative intervention, like a steroid injection or telling them to massage the scar, will solve the problem. WAY better than having someone roll in at a year saying the scar started acting up at a month and they blew it off...

 

But, practically noone comes in for the scar check, and fortunately, few patients have a real scar issue. But its way better to stop in for a free check that may prevent a problem than to have to fix something later.

 

Dr. Lindsey McLean VA