Chest wall abscesses due to continuous application of silicone gel sheets for keloid management.
A patient with three episodes of chest wall abscesses as a result of 6 years of round-the-clock, uninterrupted (except during bathing) application of silicone gel sheets to a chest wall keloid is described. Two of the episodes occurred during hot weather. It is suggested that, in the space beneath the silicone sheet, the higher humidity and temperature, both generated as a result of prolonged sheeting, especially during hot weather, might have caused the keloid and its neighbouring skin to become soggy. This sogginess might have facilitated bacterial invasion. It is suggested that some sheeting-free time during a 24 h period might be indicated so that a keloid and its adjacent skin have the time to recover from their sheeting-induced sogginess. A sheeting-free period might especially be needed in the face of sweat accumulation beneath the silicone sheet.
Department of Medicine and Geriatrics, Princess Margaret Hospital, Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Hon-Lok
HL
Tang
Department of Paediatrics, University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, Hong Kong.
Keith K
KK
Lau
Department of Medicine, San Francisco General Hospital and University of California, San Francisco, California, USA.
Ramin
R
Sam
Department of Medicine, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA.
Todd S
TS
Ing
D000038:Abscess / Q000188:drug therapy / Q000209:etiology*; D000368:Aged; D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000627:therapeutic use; D006801:Humans; D007627:Keloid / Q000628:therapy*; D008297:Male; D009779:Occlusive Dressings / Q000009:adverse effects*; D020034:Silicone Gels / Q000009:adverse effects*; D013546:Sweating; D035441:Thoracic Wall
D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D020034:Silicone Gels