Abstract
Auricular keloids may develop either on the helix or anterior and posterior lobes up to several years after piercing, and they do not regress spontaneously. Many techniques have been developed to treat these disfiguring lesions with varying successes. Kshar sutra (medicated seton) is a medicated thread that can be readily ligated at the base of the ear keloid. Due to the high recurrence rate observed in auricular keloids following surgical excision, we opted to employ the Kshar sutra technique for excision with minimum cosmetic deformity of the pinna and evaluate the duration required to excise and the recurrence of ear keloid after a follow up of two years. A 28-year-old female with a recurrent keloid on the left ear auricle was excised with kshar sutra (medicated seton) ligation. The wound heals entirely in the post-operative period. The patient followup was conducted after a month, one year and two years. The duration required to excise the keloid was three days. No recurrence of keloid after Kshar sutra (medicated seton) ligation was noted during the followup period of two years. Kshar sutra (medicated seton) ligation for ear keloid excision is a viable, minimally invasive technique to avoid recurrence and minimize cosmetic deformities of the pinna.
Keywords: Auricular keloid, Excision, Kshar sutra (medicated seton), Recurrence.