Paper Tape: Using Paper Tape for Prettier Scarsby The Workman Center for Plastic Surgery

Get a Better Scar

We love sharing this little secret that can give you a better scar. The paper tape trick allows you to get a cleaner, prettier scar when you are recovering. You can get paper tape at most drug stores. It comes in either white or skin-tone.

How to Apply Paper Tape to a Scar

Let’s talk through the process of how to apply paper tape to a scar.

• Remove a piece of paper tape
• Apply it firmly over the scar, running in the same direction
• The paper tape must be applied across the edges of the wound
• Your skin will produce oil and it will naturally come off somewhere between 7-15 days
• After it comes off, apply moisturizing lotion on probably for a day as it can dehydrate the skin
• Reapply the paper tape to the scar again

We recommend that our patients apply the tape anywhere from 6 months to a year because that corresponds to how long it takes for the skin to heal.

Why Does Paper Tape Work on Scars?

We don’t know exactly how it paper tape works on scars. Some have suggested that it keeps the scar moister or that it reduces the skin tension on the edges of the wound.

If you want to get a better scar, go down to the drug store and get some tape, put it on that incision, and just be patient.