Table 5.

Expression of COMP in Vivo

Staining	−	±	+	++	Total
Smaller-sized keloids	0	5	4	1	10
Larger-sized keloids	0	0	0	5	5
Normal dermis	6	0	0	0	6

Fifteen keloid and 6 normal tissues were immunohistochemically stained with the cartilage oligomeric matrix protein (COMP)-specific antibody. Ten of the keloid lesions were smaller than 10 cm² and the other 5 were larger. The score of staining intensity was estimated using the percentage of positive cells as follows: 0%, −; 1 to 5%, ±; 6–50%, +; >50%, ++. Difference of the staining score was statistically evaluated by the Mann-Whitney U-test, and as a result the score was significantly different between the keloids (n = 15) and normal dermis (n = 6; P < 0.001) and between the smaller- (n = 10) and larger-sized keloids (n = 5; P < 0.01).