Abnormal wound heating: keloids

Wound healing is a complex and carefully regulated physiologic response to a traumatic injury. Deregulation of this coordinated process can lead to exuberant scar formation as seen in keloids and hypertrophic scars. Despite their common occurrence, keloids remain one of the most challenging dermatologic conditions to successfully treat and may have significant psychosocial impact for the patient. In this review, we discuss the clinical features, genetics, epidemiology, and treatment of keloids. (C) 2007 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.