Scar Management & Physiotherapy

Yes, our aim is to teach you how to manage your own scar, if it’s possible for you to do the treatment yourself we will encourage that. Most of the advice given by our physiotherapist involves your participation during the day and outside of your treatment session.

Yes, swelling is quite common in and around scars, especially soon after the injury. In the case of big trauma, swelling may be a considerable problem and may be present for longer. We will assess the cause of the swelling, then advise and treat accordingly. Scar massage is not the same as the treatment needed for lymphoedema. If your swelling is due to lymphoedema we suggest that you also seek advice and treatment from a lymphoedema specialist.

Scar massage is not the same as the massage you may get for deep tissues or relaxation. It is very important that the person treating your scar has a thorough understanding of scar and treats scars regularly. Some types of massage can make scarring worse. It is especially important to receive scar massage from a scar specialist in the early stages of your injury, when your scar is still red and vascular. In time your scar can be massaged in the same way as any other parts of your body, but initially care and scar expertise is beneficial.

This is common advice! It is hard to know how to do this for yourself without clear guidance that is specific to your scar. Our physiotherapist can provide the guidance and reassurance you need. In many cases after surgery, you may only need one session of advice and explanation; other times scars do need therapeutic input.

At 152 physiotherapy does not involve needles or medications, our physiotherapist works through advice, her hands and encourages you to move and help yourself. Our physiotherapist works very closely with the surgeons, if she thinks needles or medications will be beneficial for your scar, with your consent, she will refer you to a team member.

Although you may not know too many other people with scars or anyone with a scar like yours, our physiotherapist has treated thousands of scars. She is very familiar with treating huge scars that cover nearly the whole body, through to scars that are barely visible.

The focus of physiotherapy is often on improving the feel rather than the look of your scar. However, if scars are tight and stuck this can also affect how they or the surrounding area appears. Often there can be an improvement in how the scar looks with physiotherapy, as well as in how it feels.

If your scar is very recent it may be best to see a physiotherapist first as it may be too early to do invasive treatments. At the early stages of a scar, or after a newly healed wound the focus is often on advice to help you know what to do to get the best outcome. We can advise you on how to clean the area, what silicone or creams to use, whether or how to massage the area, what to expect the scar to look like over time and what treatments may be helpful in the future. If the physiotherapist feels that you would also benefit from advice about invasive procedures or from the specialism of another team member, she will suggest which team member could also help. Invasive treatments, particularly lasers are increasingly also used early on. Often scars need input from more than one speciality.

If you are mainly concerned about the look of your scar, especially if it is more than 2 years after injury, then we are most likely to recommend that you see a plastic surgeon. If you see a surgeon first and your scar would also benefit from a physiotherapy treatment such as scar massage, then you may be referred to physiotherapist by the surgeon. We also offer joint assessments with two or more of our specialists in one consultation.