What is a bruise? We will talk about this in the presented article. Also in it you will find information about what degrees are inherent in such a painful condition.
general information
What is a bruise? Under this concept should be considered damage to tissues and small vessels, as well as their concussion, not accompanied by a violation of the integrity of the skin (with rare exceptions).
The difficulty in classifying this condition lies in the fact that absolutely any part of the body, including internal organs, can be affected by this type of injury.
Features of bruises
Speaking about what a bruise is, it should be emphasized that it is often combined with such varieties of injuries as concussion, abrasion, ruptures of internal organs, flexion, dislocations and fractures.
Bruises quite often lead to the formation of hematomas and bruises. In this case, the color of the skin can serve as a certain parameter, on the basis of which the limitation period of the injury is easily determined. In the first hours, the color of the injury site is red-crimson. Further, it becomes blue-crimson, brown-green and with a yellowish tinge.
Types of injury (degree)
Now you know what a bruise is. In modern medicine, such an injury is classified as follows:
- First degree. The skin is slightly damaged. It may show slight abrasions or scratches. Such a bruise passes painlessly and independently after 3-4 days.
- Second degree. The injury is accompanied by rupture of the muscles, which leads to the formation of a hematoma and the occurrence of edema. In this case, the patient feels a sharp pain.
- Third degree. This type includes bone contusion, damage to tendons or muscles, as well as concomitant dislocations. Such strokes are especially dangerous when it comes to injuries to the head, knee, joints or tailbone.
- Fourth degree. It is the most pronounced and is accompanied by changes that completely violate the normal functioning of human organs and systems. His general condition may be critical.
Bruising effects
When injured, the consequences are not long in coming:
- With a bruised leg, where subcutaneous tissue and skin adhere to the bone, tissue necrosis and subsequent rejection are possible.
- When falling onto poorly protected soft tissues, not only severe pain in the periosteum with its detachment occurs, but also such damage to bones as fractures and cracks.
- An oblique stroke in relation to the surface of the skin can cause them to detach with subcutaneous tissue.
- When you hit the soft tissues, hemorrhage increases. Do not be surprised if you see that this part of the body is swollen. The bruise is very painful, and the place is soaked in blood, resulting in hemarthrosis.
- With a joint injury, its function is impaired, the pain intensifies.
- When the head is hit, slight swelling may occur. If the injury is accompanied by weakness, loss of consciousness, nausea and vomiting, then this indicates a concussion or even bruising of the brain.
- If the neck is damaged, blood flow may be impaired, which affects the blood supply to the brain.
- With a bruised back or spine, blood circulation to the spinal cord is impaired .
- With a chest injury , only local changes are noted, but with a strong blow, breathing may be disturbed or even it may stop.
- A contusion of the abdomen is accompanied by damage to organs.
- At the site of the impact, shallow wounds of the skin and abrasions are formed, through which the pathogens of various infections enter the body.
First aid
What if you got a bruise when falling? Treatment for such an injury should be carried out necessarily.
First aid for bruising is to inspect the damaged area. If the injury occurred on a limb, then it is necessary to check its function.
If bruising symptoms are found, a cold should be applied to the injured area. This will cause a spasm of the vessels of the microvasculature and help stop the internal hemorrhage.
It is better not to use drugs for pain relief for bruises, so as not to miss the deterioration of the patient's condition with complications. If you are sure that as a result of the trauma the internal organs were not damaged, then the victim can be given some kind of pain medication, but not Aspirin.
With a severe bruise of the head with loss of consciousness, as well as a bruise of the lower back, chest or abdomen, in addition to applying a cold compress, the patient should be laid on a hard surface and immediately call an ambulance. In this case, it is necessary to ensure that the bruised place is immobilized.
Bruises: treatment at home and in the hospital
Injury treatment in a hospital is required only when a significant injury has occurred. For example, bruises of the head, lower back, abdomen and chest require immediate hospitalization of the patient in the surgical department. After conducting appropriate diagnostic procedures, doctors decide on further treatment for the injury. In the most severe cases, a surgical operation is performed. Access to the damaged area is carried out through endoscopy or in an open way. At the same time, ruptures of parenchymal organs and large vessels are sutured, and blood that appears is also removed. After that, the wound is drained.
At the same time, the patient is prescribed painkillers and anti-inflammatory drugs.
It should also be noted that with minor injuries, they can be treated independently. Traditional medicine advocates recommend the following guidelines:
- On the first day, cold lotions must be applied to the site of the injury. For their preparation, herbs such as St. John's wort, plantain, wormwood, yarrow and heather should be used.
- Also, chilled tea leaves are used to treat bruises.
- Another effective remedy for the tumor is a body artifact. Pharmaceutical powder is diluted with water, and then the resulting slurry is lubricated with the bruise, and covered with a cloth or compress.
- To treat injury in the joint area, a light massage should be done, using a drop of essential oil of fir, geranium or lemon.
- The bruised place can be slightly rubbed with an asterisk balm.
- Such simple folk remedy as cottage cheese helps to get rid of severe bruises of the limbs. A dairy product is cold applied to a sore spot and kept for about ¼ hour.
Using these recipes, you can get rid of a bruise in a short period of time and prevent its consequences.