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Scar Treatment in Jacksonville
A scar is the skin’s permanent record of an injury, but “permanent” doesn’t mean unchangeable. Whether your scar came from acne, surgery, or an accident, and whether it bothers you in the mirror or bothers you physically with itching, tightness, or pain, non-surgical scar treatment can improve how it looks and how it feels. At Jacksonville Dermatology & Cosmetic Surgery, scars are evaluated and treated by our experienced providers under the medical direction of Dr. Brandon T. Beal, a double board-certified, fellowship-trained dermatologist.
Double board-certified
Dr. Beal holds board certification in dermatology and Mohs micrographic surgery.
Fellowship-trained
Advanced training under Drs. Zitelli and Brodland.
Physician-owned
Independently owned small business, never a corporate chain.
Southpoint, Jacksonville
Off I-95 at Southpoint, minutes from most of Jacksonville and the beaches.
What Scar Treatment Can Do
When skin and the soft tissue beneath it are injured, they heal with scar tissue. Scar treatment uses non-surgical techniques to improve a scar’s appearance, texture, and symptoms. Some patients want a scar to be less visible; others want relief from itching, tightness, or pain; many want both. Treatment is individualized to your scar and your goals, and honest expectations come first: scars are improved, not erased.
We treat scars from acne, surgery, and injuries. If acne scarring is your main concern, it has its own dedicated page: acne scar treatment.
Types of Scars We Treat
- Raised, thickened, and keloid scars. Hypertrophic scars and keloids grow beyond the original injury and can itch or hurt. Injection-based treatment can flatten and soften these scars and relieve symptoms, without surgery.
- Depressed and textured scars. Scars that sit below the surrounding skin, including acne scars, respond to resurfacing approaches that rebuild collagen over a series of sessions.
- Discolored scars. Injured skin can heal darker or lighter than the skin around it. Darker scars and post-injury pigment can often be lightened with the same tools we use for hyperpigmentation.
- Symptomatic scars. Itching, tenderness, and tightness are treatable problems in their own right, whether or not the scar’s appearance changes.
Non-Surgical Scar Treatments We Offer
Steroid injections
For thickened, painful, or itchy scars, steroid medication injected directly into the scar can reduce symptoms and improve its appearance. Because the medication works locally in the scar itself, side effects are limited, typically to possible color changes and skin thinning at the treated spot, and your provider will review them with you honestly.
5-Fluorouracil (5-FU) injections
5-FU is another injectable option for thickened, painful, or itchy scars, and it avoids the skin-thinning and lightening side effects of steroids. It often works best combined with steroid injections. Side effects include temporary skin darkening. One firm rule: 5-FU is not appropriate if you are pregnant or intend to become pregnant, so tell your provider if that applies to you.
Resurfacing
Resurfacing improves a scar’s texture by using controlled treatment to stimulate new collagen and elastic tissue. At our Jacksonville office that means the ResurFx non-ablative fractional laser and chemical peels, chosen and sometimes combined based on your scar’s depth and your skin.
Pigment correction
For scars that healed darker than the surrounding skin, topical therapy, peels, and light-based treatment can help even the tone. See our hyperpigmentation page for the full toolkit.
One honest note on scope: our Jacksonville office does not perform surgical procedures, including surgical scar revision and surgical keloid removal. If your scar would genuinely benefit from surgery, your provider will say so plainly and help coordinate the right care.
Your Scar Treatment Plan
1
Evaluation
Your provider listens to what bothers you about the scar, its look, its symptoms, or both, and examines its type, depth, and behavior.
2
Your plan
A written plan matched to your scar: injections, resurfacing, pigment correction, or a combination, with honest expectations about what each can and can’t do.
3
Series and follow-up
Scar treatment is usually a series, not a single visit; injections and resurfacing both build results over sessions as the tissue remodels. Follow-ups track progress and tune the plan.
Results vary. Scars are improved, not erased, and your provider will set expectations specific to your scar before treatment begins.
Schedule a Scar Consultation in Jacksonville
If a scar bothers you, in the mirror or on your skin, it’s worth an evaluation; you may have more options than you think. We welcome patients from across the Jacksonville area, including Riverside and Avondale, at our office at 6817 Southpoint Pkwy, Suite 101. Send a request through our contact page, or call (904) 420-7372 to speak with our team. You can also review our pricing page.
Common questions
Scar Treatment FAQs.
Can keloids be treated without surgery?
Often, yes. Steroid and 5-FU injections can flatten and soften keloids and relieve the itching and pain they cause, over a series of sessions. Some keloids, particularly large ones, are best treated with surgical removal, which our Jacksonville office does not perform; if that’s your situation, your provider will say so honestly and help coordinate the right care.
How many treatments will my scar need?
It depends on the scar and the treatment. Injections are typically repeated every several weeks as the scar responds, and resurfacing works over a series of sessions while collagen rebuilds. Your plan will spell out the expected course before you start, and results vary by individual.
Do scar injections hurt?
There’s a pinch, but it’s brief, and the injections are placed directly into the scar tissue itself. Most patients find the trade, a few seconds of discomfort for a flatter, calmer scar, an easy one, and your provider keeps you as comfortable as possible throughout.
Can old scars still be treated?
Usually, yes. Mature scars can still respond to injections, resurfacing, and pigment correction, though very old scars may improve more gradually. Age of the scar changes the plan, not the possibility, and your provider will give you an honest read at your evaluation.
Does insurance cover scar treatment?
It depends on the reason. Treating a scar that’s painful, itchy, or limits movement is a medical concern and may be covered depending on your plan; purely cosmetic improvement is typically paid directly. We’re upfront about which is which, and current information is on our pricing page.
Your scar doesn’t get the last word.
Non-surgical scar treatment, individualized to your scar and your goals. Physician-owned and independent, in Jacksonville.