JAMAICA’S management of keloid scarring has resulted in substantial interest in collaborative research from overseas physicians.

The calls for partnerships follow the first International Keloid Symposium hosted by the Keloid Research Foundation in the United States of America September 8-9, 2016.

The symposium saw noted Jamaican consultant cosmetic and reconstructive surgeon, Dr Guyan Arscott, and presenters from other countries, including the USA, Holland, Denmark and Singapore, sharing their experience and research on the management of keloid — a genetic skin disorder which results in excessive growth and formation of tumour-like areas in an otherwise healthy skin.

Dr Arscott, a keynote speaker at the event, presented “The Jamaican Experience in Management of Keloid” through which he shared notes on the Jamaican population, its ethnicity and relatively high incidence of keloid scarring. He highlighted the use of adjuvant low-dose radiotherapy in the management of difficult keloids.

Dr Arscott presented a review of over 1,000 cases managed in plastic surgery clinics in Kingston, treatment and outcomes and shared encouraging results in the management of morbid keloids and highlighted treatment options, including medical therapy like chemotherapy in severe cases.

“Colleagues at the symposium shared seminal work being done in their various countries including keloid skin disease trials, new approaches like surgical excision, platelet-rich plasma and in-office radiation therapy and skin cell reprogramming,” Dr Arscott noted.

“ There is a lot to be gained in collaboration and the exchange of information among physicians that would greatly benefit patients,” he declared.