Intralesional excision with topical intralesional cryotherapy improves the treatment of keloid scarring in a paediatric patient.

Recurrent keloid scarring has a significant impact on quality of life. Management is complex, particularly for scars resistant to conventional treatments and in paediatric cases where radiotherapy is not a suitable adjunct to surgical excision. We present the case of a nine-year-old African Caribbean girl with multiple large and recurrent keloid scars on both ears and bilateral sensorineural deafness. Following repeated intralesional excisions, corticosteroid and botulinum toxin injections, she continued to experience rapid recurrence of her keloids, worsening pain and pruritus. She was no longer able to wear her hearing aids because of the large size of the keloids. We employed a novel technique using topical intralesional cryotherapy, applying liquid nitrogen intraoperatively to the inside of the skin flaps immediately post-intralesional keloid excision and before wound closure. At 26-month follow-up a good aesthetic and symptomatic result was achieved, with minimal hypopigmentation, significantly reduced scar volume and significantly slowed recurrence. We discuss this case and review the current literature on the use of topical intralesional cryotherapy for keloid scarring.