Question

A 46-year-old woman is admitted to the hospital for surgical removal her thyroid gland due to a cancerous tumor. The surgeon informs her that she will have only a very thin scar that should fade after many years.

a. Describe how scar tissue is different from the rest of the skin.

b. Identify the two processes for wound healing.

c. Explain two reasons why surgical incisions typically leave very small scars and fade while other injuries leave larger scars that last for a long time.

Answer 1

1. Scar tissue is different from other parts of the skin. It is a fibrous tissue that replaces normal skin after an injury. It is similar to the tissue that it replaces because the protein it is composed of is same as that of the tissue it is replacing.

But the fiber composition of the protein will be different in the scar tissue. Sevaceous glands and hair follicles do not regrow within the scar tissues.

2. Wound healing has 4 main phases. Two processes among them are hemostasis and inflammation.

3. Surgical incisions and minor cuts usually leave a fine-line scar that gets flat and pale over time. Thus surgical incisions leave very small scars and fade.