Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 8, 2026

Isolation, Culture, and Characterization of Primary Dermal Fibroblasts from Human Keloid Tissue

Isolation, Culture, and Characterization of Primary Dermal Fibroblasts from Human Keloid Tissue

Published on: July 28, 2023

Should excised keloid scars be sent for routine histologic analysis?

Nadim Gulamhuseinwala¹, Simon Mackey, Peter Meagher

¹Department of Plastic Surgery, St George's Hospital, London, England. nadimgulam@gmail.com

Annals of Plastic Surgery

|January 25, 2008

Summary

Routine histologic analysis of surgically excised keloids may be unnecessary. Most specimens confirmed clinical diagnoses, with no malignancies found, suggesting clinical assessment is often sufficient for keloid scarring.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

A UK consensus statement on thromboprophylaxis for autologous breast reconstruction.

Journal of plastic, reconstructive & aesthetic surgery : JPRAS·2023

Same author

Transverse Upper Gracilis Flap Breast Reconstruction: A 5-Year Consecutive Case Series of Patient-Reported Outcomes.

Plastic and reconstructive surgery·2022

Same author

Acne Keloidalis Nuchae: A Staged Reconstruction.

Cureus·2021

Same author

Cartilage-like composition of keloid scar extracellular matrix suggests fibroblast mis-differentiation in disease.

Matrix biology plus·2021

Same author

Trends in elasticated strap-related injuries from Melbourne, Australia, 2007-2018.

The Medical journal of Australia·2021

Same author

Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on microsurgery fellowships.

Journal of plastic, reconstructive & aesthetic surgery : JPRAS·2020

Area of Science:

Dermatology
Pathology
Surgical Oncology

Background:

Keloid scarring is diagnosed clinically, often following trauma.
Practices vary regarding routine histologic examination of excised keloid specimens.
This study reviews the histology of clinically diagnosed keloids.

Purpose of the Study:

To evaluate the necessity of routine histologic analysis for clinically diagnosed keloid excisions.
To determine the accuracy of clinical keloid diagnosis based on subsequent histology.

Main Methods:

Retrospective analysis of excised keloid specimens.
Identification of all clinically diagnosed keloids between April 1995 and April 2006.
Review of pathology reports for these specimens.

More Related Videos

Murine Excisional Wound Healing Model and Histological Morphometric Wound Analysis

Murine Excisional Wound Healing Model and Histological Morphometric Wound Analysis

Published on: August 21, 2020

Visualizing Scar Development Using SCAD Assay - An Ex-situ Skin Scarring Assay

Visualizing Scar Development Using SCAD Assay - An Ex-situ Skin Scarring Assay

Published on: April 28, 2022

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 8, 2026

Isolation, Culture, and Characterization of Primary Dermal Fibroblasts from Human Keloid Tissue

Isolation, Culture, and Characterization of Primary Dermal Fibroblasts from Human Keloid Tissue

Published on: July 28, 2023

Murine Excisional Wound Healing Model and Histological Morphometric Wound Analysis

Murine Excisional Wound Healing Model and Histological Morphometric Wound Analysis

Published on: August 21, 2020

Visualizing Scar Development Using SCAD Assay - An Ex-situ Skin Scarring Assay

Visualizing Scar Development Using SCAD Assay - An Ex-situ Skin Scarring Assay

Published on: April 28, 2022

Main Results:

Out of 568 specimens, 81% were confirmed as keloid histologically.
Acne keloidalis (11%) and hypertrophic scars (6%) were other common findings.
No malignancies or dysplasias were identified in any specimen.

Conclusions:

Histologic confirmation aligns closely with clinical keloid diagnosis.
Routine histology may not be necessary for excised keloids with high clinical suspicion.
Clinical assessment appears reliable for keloid scarring, potentially reducing unnecessary pathology costs.