What Is Scar Tissue?
We all know about the types of scars that form when you cut or burn yourself. Scars look and act differently than the healthy skin that surrounds them, and usually, they’re just plain ugly. Depending on the severity of the injury, a scar could be with you for the rest of your life.
Scar tissue can also form inside your body as a part of the normal healing process. Whenever tendons or ligaments are injured, your body produces scar tissue to help heal the injury. In fact, after the age of puberty, the only thing that your body can heal with is scar tissue. And, it begins to form less than 24 hours after the injury.
Scar Tissue Causes Pain
Every joint in your body is held together by a joint capsule which is made up of ligaments. These ligament capsules hold the shape of the joint and produce lubricating synovial fluid that protects your cartilage to ensure safe, pain-free movement. The healthy ligaments that make up the capsules are strong and flexible because they are made up of long fibers that run parallel to one another and have a good supply of oxygen and nutrients.
Unlike healthy tissue, scar tissue forms in random, criss-crossing patterns. It is not as flexible or as functional as the tissue that it is replacing. It has poor circulation, which limits t ...
