Current Practice in Keloid Treatment: a Survey of Dutch Dermatologists and Plastic Surgeons

BACKGROUND: Several therapeutic options are available for the treatment of keloids, but it remains unclear which treatment options are most commonly used by practitioners. OBJECTIVE: To explore the prevailing treatment for different keloid phenotypes among dermatologists and plastic surgeons in the Netherlands. METHODS: Members of the Dutch society for Plastic surgery and the Dutch society for Dermatology and Venereology were asked to participate. Questions elaborated on the treatment for a small and a large keloid on the mandibula and multiple keloids on the chest. RESULTS: One hundred forty-three responses were obtained. Heterogeneity in treatment was extremely high for the small, large, and multiple keloids with 27, 35, and 33 various first choices, respectively. Intralesional corticosteroids were most often chosen for all 3 different keloid phenotypes. These were mostly (61%) administered as monotherapy for the small keloid and mostly combined with other treatments for the large keloid (19%) and multiple keloids (43%). Surgery was chosen regularly (22%) for the large keloid, mostly combined with intralesional corticosteroids (10%) or brachytherapy (8.4%). CONCLUSION: Keloid treatment is very heterogeneous among dermatologists and plastic surgeons, even in a relatively small country as the Netherlands. Moreover, the treatment choice depends on the keloid phenotype.