Silicone sheets and pressure can help flatten a keloid. DIY removal and most home remedies can’t.
If you’re searching for keloid treatment at home, you’ve probably noticed that keloids don’t behave like other scars. They grow past the edge of the original wound, they can itch or feel tender, and they rarely fade on their own [2].
Some at-home steps genuinely help, especially for prevention and alongside clinic treatment. But for an established keloid, the most effective options are delivered by a dermatologist, and no single treatment works for everyone [1][4]. This guide sets out what the evidence supports, what it doesn’t, and where at-home devices fit (and where they don’t).
The short answer
Silicone gel sheets and, for earlobe keloids, pressure earrings are the best-supported things you can do at home, and both work best under a dermatologist’s guidance [1][3]. Protecting healing skin from the sun and telling your surgeon if you’re keloid-prone help with prevention [3]. Cutting, freezing or tying off a keloid yourself is unsafe, and even when a doctor removes one surgically, nearly all come back unless surgery is combined with another treatment [1].
What is a keloid, and how is it different from a raised scar?
A keloid is a raised scar that grows beyond the boundary of the original injury. It can follow something as small as a piercing, an acne spot, a burn or a surgical cut, and it may be pink, red, purple or darker than the surrounding skin [2]. Keloids most often appear on the earlobes, chest, shoulders and upper back, and they’re more common in people with darker skin tones and in people with a family history of them [2][5].
A hypertrophic scar can look similar, but it stays within the original wound [2]. The two can respond differently to treatment, which is one reason a diagnosis comes first. A dermatologist can also confirm that a firm, growing lump at a scar or piercing site is a keloid and not something else.
Why keloids are so hard to shift
Ordinary healing moves through inflammation, rebuilding and, over many months, remodeling, when a raised scar gradually softens and flattens. You can read more about that process in our guide to understanding scars. In a keloid, the repair process doesn’t switch off as it should: the scar keeps laying down excess collagen, so it continues to grow instead of settling [8].
Once a keloid stops growing it tends to stay the same size, and it rarely fades without treatment [2]. The realistic aim of treatment is to flatten and soften the keloid, ease symptoms such as itching, and lower the chance of it returning, rather than to make it disappear overnight [1][4].
Keloid treatment at home: what the evidence supports
Silicone gel sheets and silicone gel
Silicone sheets are the at-home option dermatologists use most. They may help flatten a keloid, and they’re also used after a procedure to reduce the chance of one coming back [1][4]. They’re painless and low risk [5], but they need patience: in studies, people typically wear them for 12 to 24 hours a day over many months [9].
Never apply a silicone sheet to a scab or an open wound. Wait until the skin has fully closed [1]. If your skin becomes irritated, stop and check with your clinician.
Pressure, especially for earlobe keloids
Steady pressure can help stop a keloid returning after treatment. For earlobes this usually means a pressure earring; elsewhere it may be a pressure dressing or garment. Pressure works best when it starts as soon as thickening appears, and a dermatologist can fit the device so it’s both effective and safe [1][3].
Sun protection while skin heals
Keep a healing wound protected from the sun. Keloids take time to appear, so keep protecting the area after the wound has closed [3].
Prevention if you’re keloid-prone
If you or a blood relative form keloids, tell your surgeon or the clinician performing any procedure beforehand. They can take precautions and may recommend treatment straight afterwards [3]. Think carefully about elective procedures that break the skin, including piercings and cosmetic treatments, and ask whether a test spot makes sense first [3].
What doesn’t work at home, and what to avoid
Don’t cut, tie off, freeze or burn a keloid yourself. Home freezing kits, wart removers and string aren’t designed for scar tissue, and a new injury to keloid-prone skin can trigger a new keloid. Keloids that return after removal can be larger than the original [5], and even when a doctor removes one surgically, nearly all return if surgery is the only treatment [1].
Remedies shared online, such as tea tree oil, rest mainly on anecdote rather than good-quality trials for keloids [10]. If a product promises to “dissolve” or “remove” a keloid at home, treat that claim with caution.
At-home laser and light devices: an honest scope statement
Search for an at-home laser for keloids and you’ll find plenty of devices. Before you buy one, here is what you should know about how they compare with the lasers used in a dermatology clinic.
What clinic lasers do
In clinic, lasers such as the pulsed dye laser and the ablative CO2 laser can reduce a keloid’s height and fade its color. They’re usually combined with other treatments, such as corticosteroid injections or pressure, rather than used alone [1][6]. These are professional devices, operated by trained clinicians who adjust the settings for each scar. Even so, the published evidence is mostly small studies, and a 2017 review found no randomized controlled trials of CO2 or Er:YAG lasers for keloids [6].
What at-home devices can and can’t do
Consumer red and near-infrared light devices, whether LED or low-power laser and sometimes described as photobiomodulation, deliver far less energy than clinic lasers and don’t remove or reshape scar tissue. Research into low-level light for keloids is at an early stage. The most-cited at-home study followed three patients who used an 805 nm LED daily for 30 days after their scars had been surgically revised [7], and a 2025 review notes that wavelength, dose and session length vary widely between studies, so there is no agreed protocol yet [8].
We’re not aware of any at-home laser or light device that is FDA-cleared to treat keloids. If a device mentions FDA clearance, check exactly what it was cleared for in the FDA’s 510(k) database [11]. Clearance for one use, such as hair removal, does not extend to scars or keloids.
If you have an active keloid, talk to a dermatologist before using any light device on it.
How dermatologists treat keloids
Most dermatologists combine treatments, because combinations tend to work better than any single approach [1][4].
Corticosteroid injections are usually the first step. Given over a series of visits, they can flatten and soften a keloid, although many treated keloids regrow within five years [4].
Surgery is almost always paired with something else, such as injections, pressure, cryosurgery or superficial radiation therapy, because nearly 100% of keloids return after surgery alone [1].
Cryosurgery (freezing) works best on small keloids, but it can lighten the skin, so it may not be recommended for darker skin tones [1][4].
Laser treatment can reduce a keloid’s height and color, usually alongside injections or pressure [1].
Silicone sheets and pressure are often prescribed after another treatment to help stop the keloid returning [4].
No treatment consistently gets rid of a keloid, and what works for one person may not work for another [4]. Starting soon after a keloid appears gives treatment the best chance [5].
A note on before-and-after photos
When you’re weighing any keloid treatment or device, look for before-and-after evidence that tells you who the images came from and whether the result is typical; uses the same angle, lighting and distance in both photos; states the time between them; lists every other treatment used in that period; and explains how the change was measured. Clinical studies use validated tools, such as the Patient and Observer Scar Assessment Scale (POSAS), for exactly this reason.
When to see a dermatologist
Book an appointment if a scar is growing beyond the original wound, is itchy, painful or tender, limits movement, keeps returning after treatment, or is affecting how you feel about yourself [2][5]. In the US, you can find a board-certified dermatologist through the American Academy of Dermatology’s Find a Dermatologist tool [12].
If you’re keloid-prone and planning surgery, a piercing or a cosmetic procedure, speak to a dermatologist beforehand [3].
Frequently asked questions
Can you treat a keloid at home?
You can support treatment at home with silicone sheets and, for earlobes, pressure earrings, and you can lower your risk of new keloids. Shrinking an established keloid usually needs clinic treatment, such as injections [1][3].
Do at-home lasers work on keloids?
There isn’t good evidence that consumer light devices treat keloids, and we’re not aware of any that are FDA-cleared to do so. Clinic lasers can help, usually combined with other treatments [1][6][7].
Can a keloid be removed permanently?
No treatment guarantees a keloid won’t return. Combining treatments gives the best odds [1][4].
Will a keloid go away on its own?
Rarely. Once a keloid stops growing, it usually stays the same size [2].
Are keloids dangerous?
Most keloids are harmless, but they can itch, hurt, restrict movement over a joint and affect self-esteem, which are all good reasons to seek treatment [2].
*This article is for general information only and isn’t a substitute for advice from your doctor or dermatologist. Find more expert guides in the LYMA Journal.
Sources
1. American Academy of Dermatology. Keloids: Diagnosis and treatment. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/keloids-treatment
2. American Academy of Dermatology. Keloids: Signs and symptoms. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/keloids-symptoms
3. American Academy of Dermatology. Keloids: Self-care. https://aad.org/public/diseases/a-z/keloids-self-care
4. American Academy of Dermatology. Keloids: Overview. https://www.aad.org/public/diseases/bumps-and-growths/keloids
5. Harvard Health Publishing. Keloids (reviewed by Howard E. LeWine, MD). https://www.health.harvard.edu/a_to_z/keloids-a-to-z
6. Forbat E, Ali FR, Al-Niaimi F. Treatment of keloid scars using light-, laser- and energy-based devices: a contemporary review of the literature. Lasers Med Sci. 2017. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10103-017-2332-5
7. Barolet D, Boucher A. Prophylactic low-level light therapy for the treatment of hypertrophic scars and keloids: a case series. Lasers Surg Med. 2010;42(6):597-601. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/20662038/
8. Photobiomodulation therapy in keloid management: a comprehensive review. Front Med. 2025;12. https://doi.org/10.3389/fmed.2025.1550662
9. Keloids: Which treatment is best for your patient? J Fam Pract (MDedge). https://www.mdedge.com/content/keloids-which-treatment-best-your-patient/page/0/1
10. Review of current and emerging keloid treatments. Dermatol Ther (Heidelb). 2020. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13555-020-00427-2
