First aid for injury: what can and cannot be done

What is a bruise

Strictly speaking, contusion is not a general medical diagnosis. This term denotes the mechanism of injury - when bruised, soft tissues are hit (strongly and quickly squeezed), but the skin remains conditionally intact, possibly only slightly scratched.

Most often, bruises are harmless. It's just that it's hard to distinguish them from more serious injuries - dislocation, rupture of ligaments, fracture.

When you need to see a doctor as soon as possible

When colliding with a solid object, the tissues are compressed, the capillaries in them burst - this is how a bruise occurs. As a rule, it is he who is the main symptom of What Is a Contusion? superficial injury. Soreness and the top layer of skin that is scratched upon impact are also popular signs.

If you observe other symptoms, then we are talking about more serious things. Contact an emergency room as soon as possible or even call an ambulance if:

You hurt your head and now you feel nauseous, weakness and dizziness are present. In this case, we can talk about a concussion.
After a blow to the stomach, severe weakness, pallor, tinnitus, cold sweat appeared. You may have an internal one caused by damage to vital organs.
You hit your back and feel that your arms and legs are no longer obeying you. Or there was shortness of breath, coughing up blood. This indicates a possible injury to the spinal cord or injury to the lung.
The blow was in the chest, and now something is wrong with the heartbeat. This is fraught with cardiac arrest.
You hurt a limb - for example, you fell unsuccessfully on your knee, wrist, or touched a wall with your elbow - and, in addition to pain, you notice severe swelling, you cannot bend an arm or leg in the joint. This is how a fracture, dislocation or rupture of ligaments often looks.

Any of the symptoms listed above require medical advice. In no case can we hope that this is just a superficial injury: if you miss a dangerous condition, you can lose your health, or even your life.

How to provide first aid for injury

If there are no dangerous symptoms and you are one hundred percent sure that you just hurt yourself, the matter is greatly simplified. Bruises don't require Is It a Bruise or Wound? When Do You Need Treatment? any specific treatment. Enough of the elementary so-called RICE-therapy.

R - Rest. Try to keep the bruised area calm. If we are talking about a joint, move it less.
I - Ice. To relieve pain, apply something cold to the affected area. For example, a bag of ice or frozen vegetables wrapped in a thin towel, a heating pad filled with ice water, or at least a chilled steel spoon.
C - Compress. It is possible (but not necessary) to apply a tight bandage to the injury site - for example, put on compression knee-highs. This will help relieve swelling.
E - Elevate. Immediately after the injury, try to raise the affected area above the level of the heart for at least a few minutes. This procedure will reduce the size of the possible hematoma.

If an abrasion appears on the skin with a bruise, you also need to take care of it. Rinse the wound with clean water (ideally soapy water). If necessary, stop the bleeding by pressing a clean handkerchief or tissue to the wound for a couple of minutes.

Now all that remains is to wait. In most cases, bruises disappear without a trace in 1–2 weeks.

First aid for fracture: what can and cannot be done

Let's be honest, there isn't much you can do. But even a little thing can sometimes save a life. Cracked or broken bone (no matter where: in the arm, leg, ribs, pelvis …) is not always obvious. Meanwhile, its sharp edges, hidden under the skin and inside tissues, can disrupt the integrity of large blood vessels or even pierce vital organs.