Table of contents:
- What are bruises
- How quickly bruises go away
- How to remove a bruise if less than a day has passed since the injury
- How to remove a bruise if more than a day has passed since the injury
- When to show a bruise to a doctor
2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44
The main thing is to do everything on time.
What are bruises
A bruise is a type of hematoma. But if the hematoma as a whole is an internal hemorrhage that occurs due to damage to the blood vessels and can be quite extensive and serious, then the bruises are relatively harmless damage to the Bruises of the smallest subcutaneous vessels - capillaries.
When bruised, the capillaries break, burst and blood flows out of them. The more leaked, the larger the size of the bruise.
How quickly bruises go away
On average, it takes our body two to three weeks to get rid of a bruise. All this time, the spilled blood is absorbed by the surrounding tissues.
Moreover, the more blood is under the skin, the longer it will take for the body to resolve the hematoma. Fortunately, the process can be accelerated.
But for this it is important to know at what stage of healing the bruise is.
What will help two days after a bruise is absolutely impossible to do in the first.
How to remove a bruise if less than a day has passed since the injury
The bruise is not yet fully formed. The site of the injury was slightly swollen and became red-pink. The color lasts from several hours to a day.
The main task at this time is not to let the bruise grow.
1. Relax
Try to restrict movement, especially those involving the affected area of the body. The more movement, the stronger the blood flow and the more extensive the infilling hematoma.
2. Make a cold compress
Immediately after the injury! The faster, the less bruising will be. Under the influence of cold, the blood flow slows down, which means that less will flow into the subcutaneous tissue What Helps a Bruise Heal? … In addition, a cold compress reduces the effect of cold on the occurrence of bruising, haematoma and pain at the injection site in subcutaneous low molecular weight heparin.
As a compress, you can use an ice pack or, for example, frozen vegetables. Wrap it in a thin cloth or towel and apply to the injured area for 10 minutes. The procedure can be repeated after a 20-minute break.
On the first day, in no case should you warm up the site of the injury, or even more so massage it. This will increase the blood flow and the bruise will grow larger.
3. Apply a pharmacy cream or gel from bruises without warming effect
Such drugs have anti-edema and anti-inflammatory effects. Look for dimethyl sulfoxide, heparin and dexpanthenol in the list of active ingredients.
4. Try to keep the bruised area above the level of the heart
Naturally, whenever possible. For example, if your leg is injured, lie down on the sofa and place your feet on a cushion or armrest. Gravity will force blood to drain What Helps a Bruise Heal? from the site of the injury, which means that the size of the bruise will be smaller.
5. If the pain is severe, take a pain reliever
But not aspirin or ibuprofen. They thin the blood and can lead to an increase in the size of the hematoma.
How to remove a bruise if more than a day has passed since the injury
Typically, a bruise has already formed within 24 hours. The blood at the site of the injury has darkened and shines through the skin with a blue, purple or (if several days have passed since the injury) a greenish tint.
The bruise begins to heal, the spilled blood loses oxygen and darkens. It takes up to 5 days.
These bruises become about the sixth day. This is a sign of the final destruction of hemoglobin.
This is how the hematoma looks about a week after the injury. The bruise will not change anymore, except that it will gradually brighten.
Now the main task is to accelerate the resorption of the hematoma. The easiest way to achieve this is with heat.
1. Warm up
Warm compresses (you can apply a heating pad or a cloth moistened with warm water to the bruise), massages, as well as creams with a warming effect - containing badyagu, capsaicin (pepper alkaloid) and bee and snake poisons have proven themselves well.
To speed up your recovery, you can go to a hot bath. Unless, of course, you have no contraindications to this.
2. If it still hurts, take a pain reliever with a decongestant effect
For example, aspirin and ibuprofen (now you can). They are shown What Helps a Bruise Heal? if the bruise looks swollen. Of course, strictly follow the instructions for frequency and dosage!
3. Use creams or compresses with herbal extracts and vitamins
- An ointment or gel based on arnica extract reduces Accelerated resolution of laser-induced bruising with topical 20% arnica: a rater-blinded randomized controlled trial edema and accelerates regeneration.
- Cream with vitamin K improves the effects of topical vitamin K on bruising after laser treatment and promotes the restoration of damaged capillaries and blood vessels.
- Aloe Gel Reduces Herbal Medicine: Biomolecular and Clinical Aspects. 2nd edition pain relief and reduces inflammation. Gels with the highest (up to 99%) content of pure aloe juice work best.
- Vitamin C cream has Vitamin C in dermatology anti-inflammatory properties and improves wound healing.
- Products based on pineapple extract, thanks to the plant enzyme bromelain contained in this fruit, Potential role of bromelain in clinical and therapeutic applications, have an anti-inflammatory effect and accelerate the disappearance of bruises. Treat yourself to pineapple, too.
For recovery, it is not necessary to use pharmacy products. For example, a compress made from finely chopped onions (chopped, wrapped in gauze, pressed slightly so that the onion releases juice, applied to the bruised area) will also have a positive effect due to the content of vitamin C.
4. Disguise
A few days after the bruise, when the color fades, the bruise can be hidden with foundation. Choose a product with a yellowish undertone.
When to show a bruise to a doctor
Bruises do not always go away on their own. In addition, sometimes they can be symptoms of unpleasant diseases. It is imperative and as soon as possible to consult a physician if the bruise:
- It does not disappear, although more than two weeks have passed since the injury.
- Feels hard to the touch.
- It starts to grow in size and / or becomes more painful.
- Adds soreness to the movements of the joint next to which it is located.
- It is located near the eye and, as it seems to you, impairs vision.
- Appeared for no reason. And not only that: you regularly notice more and more new bruises on your skin of an origin that is not entirely clear to you.
- Begins to show signs of infection: there is any discharge from the skin in the damaged area, the temperature rises.
All this may indicate that the hemorrhage is much deeper and more extensive than you thought, and for some reason the body tissues cannot cope with that amount of blood. In this case, to get rid of the hematoma, you will need the help of a doctor.
Also, diseases of internal organs and physiological fragility of blood vessels are not excluded. These situations also require the attention of a specialist.
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