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Boston Marathon Project Heal: How SkinCare Physicians helps those injured with scars

The Boston Marathon bombings have left many people injured, with scars that will need care and treatment over the coming months. A few days after the tragic event, it struck us at SkinCare Physicians that our dermatologists could help by offering state of the art laser treatment to anyone injured in the Boston Marathon attack without charge. We have so many new devices and techniques available to improve scars.

The Boston Marathon Project Heal was born!

Breakthroughs in the last few years have dramatically improved the treatment of scars from burns and traumatic injuries. New technology and techniques have been developed here in Boston, and used in the Wounded Warrior Project around the country to improve scars on veterans returning with combat injuries. Lasers can significantly improve or remove both dark color and redness from scars. In addition, new ablative fractional resurfacing lasers combined with other medications have shown dramatic improvement in the texture, flexibility, function, and appearance of scarred tissue.

In the past it was thought that scars should be allowed to mature for a year or more before any intervention. New science presented at the Hynes Convention Center last month (less than 200 yards from the finish line of the Boston Marathon), at the American Society for Laser Medicine and Surgery annual meeting, demonstrates that early treatment of traumatic scars can alter their trajectory and allow more rapid normalization of tissue. Dr. Nathan Uebelhoer, a Navy officer and former fellow at SkinCare Physicians, has been instrumental in developing and bringing these techniques to the injured veterans.

Ablative fractional lasers vaporize tiny columns of tissue in the skin (similar to a lawn or golf course that has been aerated) and allow the body to replace those damaged areas with new healthier skin. The treatment was originally designed to treat wrinkles but has shown remarkable and groundbreaking improvement in scars.

SkinCare Physicians’ dermatologists are leaders in the field of laser therapy. We will treat those wounded at the Boston Marathon, using the latest in pulsed dye and ablative fractional lasers to improve scarring. Veterans wounded in combat have shown life-changing improvement in their scars following treatment, and this same strategy can be applied to those injured in the bombings. Many have seen not only cosmetic improvement of their scars, but also an increase in flexibility that has allowed them to more freely maneuver digits and limbs.

Everyone here in Boston is looking for a way to help. We at Skincare Physicians are simply trying to offer our assistance and some comfort to those who have been injured. By launching Boston Marathon Project Heal, we hope to help our community to heal.

The response from the media and the medical community has been wonderful. Help us get the word out to those in need by sharing this post.

For more information call (617) 731-1600 or contact us online.

Note: In response to the Boston Marathon tragedy and to help SkinCare Physicians with its Project Heal initiative, Etna Interactive, our Web site design vendor, created the Boston Marathon Project Heal logo free of charge. We are very thankful to Etna’s employees for their support.

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