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Suggest Ways To Cure Atrophy Caused By Steroid Injections

Posted on Mon, 25 Aug 2014

Question: A month ago i had a cystic pimple on my chin injected with kenalog twice. A week later the area formed a rather deep indentation about the size of a pinky fingertip. Will this fill in on its own and if so about how long will it take? Can i use a filler like juvaderm and is there anything i can do to speed up the healing of the indentation? Thank you.

Answered by Dr. Dr. Kakkar (57 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Steroid induced atrophy

Detailed Answer:
Hello and welcome to healthcaremagic

I am Dr. Kakkar. I have gone through your query and I have understood it.

Kenalog if injected in high concentrations and if injected in too much can lead to local atrophy.

This is usually reversible completely by itself in about 3-4 months. However, the recovery may be hastened by saline injections.

Fillers can also be used but they are expensive. I usually treat my patients with saline injections and usually the atrophy reverses itself in about 3-4 months.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Kakkar (10 hours later)

Thank you for your reply. It has been 4 weeks since the kenalog injections, should the atrophy continue to get worse or is it at the point where it should gradually be getting better? Also, if my dermatologist won't do saline injections will it likely still return back to normal? Thank you .

Answered by Dr. Dr. Kakkar (11 hours later)

Brief Answer:
Steroid induced atrophy

Detailed Answer:
Hi.

I think it should not get worse than what it is now at 4 weeks.

It should reverse back to normal by itself with time however saline injections would hasten the recovery.

Regards

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar

Follow up: Dr. Dr. Kakkar (1 hour later)

Thank you. So at 4 weeks I shouldn't be concerned about further atrophy in the area? I'm worried it will just keep getting worse so it is reassuring that you think by now (4 weeks since injection) that it shouldn't get worse. How do the saline injections help speed the healing of the atrophy? Thank you again!

Answered by Dr. Dr. Kakkar (4 minutes later)

Brief Answer:
Steroid induced atrophy

Detailed Answer:
Hi.

Yes, by 4 weeks it has completely evolved and wont get any worse.

I would suggest you to go to this link: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/0000

Regards

Note: Hope the answers resolves your concerns, however for further guidance of skin related queries consult our Dermatologist.Click here to book a consultation

Above answer was peer-reviewed by : Dr. Chakravarthy Mazumdar