PolyU-developed Smart Scar-Care pad makes treatment of hypertrophic scars easier and more effective.

The delayed healing of wounds resulting from burns, surgery and trauma can result in hypertrophic scarring, which often leads to complications. Perhaps more significantly, the social stigma of visible scarring can be profoundly damaging. Prof. Cecilia Li of the Department of Rehabilitation Sciences was well aware of this situation when she developed the Smart Scar-Care pad, rendering scar treatment more effective than ever.

Hypertrophic scars are raised red scars that form at the sites of wounds and can be itchy and painful, leading to complications such as soft tissue contracture, joint stiffness or even deformity. The outcomes of traditional scar treatment strategies, however, are often less than ideal, with have a variety of limitations. Pressure garment or pressure pads made from polyethylene foam, the treatment approaches most commonly adopted by therapists, use mechanical compression to reduce tension and vascularity and to realign scar tissue, but they are uncomfortable to wear and often non-durable to sustain the pressure. Another type of treatment, commercially available silicone gel pads, effectively hydrates hypertrophic scars, but does not exert pressure on the scars and thus fails to inhibit their growth.

Composed of a silicone stiffener and medical grade silicone gel sheet, the Smart Scar-Care pad combines the effect of pressure therapy and silicone gel, serving dual functions of reinforcing pressure and moisturising the scar. The smooth side of the silicone stiffener is attached to a silicone gel sheet which serves to moisturise the scar. The other side of the silicone stiffener is characterised by circular silicone studs which can easily be customised to fit curved or flat skin surfaces to maintain uniform pressure under pressure garments or bandages. The Smart Scar-Care pad comes in different stud height, diameter and gel thickness, for treatment of scars of different thickness in various parts of the body.

In clinical trials, the pad has shown good performance in improving elasticity, reducing vascularity and pigmentation and maintaining hydration of scar tissue. Case studies with long-term follow-up have shown that it is effective in improving hypertrophic scars. Patients have also reported that it is more durable and user-friendly than traditional pressure pads.

This innovation received the Grand Award and Gold Medal with the Congratulations of the Jury at the 45th International Exhibition of Inventions in Geneva in 2017. ♦

The Smart Scar-Care pad can be easily trimmed to treat scars of different size and thickness in
various parts of the body.