Forearm bruise: symptoms, differences, diagnosis, treatment

Symptoms of a forearm injury

Signs of this injury are:

• pain in the hand and forearm area during palpation and movement;
• the occurrence of a hematoma in the area of ​​impact;
• edema and swelling.

The motor activity of the hand is preserved, however, the patient may complain about its limitation. Painful sensations can appear suddenly and also disappear unexpectedly. The severity of pain and nature may also vary.

If pain after an injury persists for a long time, this indicates more serious problems than might initially seem.

In patients with high capillary permeability, even a minor bruised wound of the forearm and careless touching it can lead to the formation of a significant bruise. With a severe injury, there may be no external hematoma at all.

Prevention

To prevent forearm bruises, doctors advise following simple rules:

• observe safety precautions at work;
• choose the right shoes in the cold season - with anti-slip soles;
• do not forget about protective equipment during potentially dangerous sports;
• Closely monitor children playing - stop visiting construction sites, quarries, etc.

A forearm bruise is an injury that resolves on its own in most patients. Experts recommend not delaying contacting a trauma center - only an instrumental examination will allow you to distinguish a fracture from a bruise. Ignoring pathology over time can lead to arthrosis, deformation changes in the tendon-ligamentous apparatus, and degeneration of muscle tissue.

Bruised forearm in a child

Children are at risk. Due to increased physical activity, carelessness, and curiosity, it is this category of people who often receive forearm bruises due to falls or blows.

The clinical picture is varied. There is pain on palpation, discomfort when moving (turning, raising the arm). Often a bruised forearm wound in children is accompanied by swelling and rupture of capillaries (hematomas). Complicated injuries can be characterized by damage to ligaments, muscles, and tendons, so it is advisable to seek medical help as soon as possible. This will help determine the type of problem, select the right treatment for a speedy recovery and shorten the rehabilitation period of the little patient.

Symptoms

Common clinical signs of a forearm injury include:

• severe swelling of tissues in the affected area;
• ruptures of capillaries with further occurrence of hematomas;
• pain syndrome - intensifies when touching or moving the affected upper limb;
• complex injuries provoke damage to joints, muscles, tendons, ligaments - with them the pain is stronger and can persist for a long time;
• if at the time of injury soft structures are between the bones and a hard object, then there is a possibility of a necrotic process;
• when the articulation area is damaged, there is a risk of subsequent development of post-traumatic arthritis: blood entering the cavity of the articular apparatus leads to an aseptic inflammatory process.

Pain syndrome occurs against the background of increasing swelling - accumulated blood puts pressure on the nerve endings. If discomfort in the injured arm persists for a long time, then this is the first signal of more serious injuries than a simple bruise.

The area of ​​hematomas is proportional to the volume of ruptured vessels: bleeding from capillaries stops within a few minutes, from venous-arterial lines it can continue for over 24 hours. Extensive bruising can occur under certain conditions:

• hemophilia, complex liver diseases;
• autoimmune diseases, therapy with fibrinolytics, anticoagulants.

In the presence of these parameters, large hematomas are formed when the integrity of the capillary bed is disrupted. With bruises in the forearm area, the bruises retain their bluish or purple tint for 72 hours, then begin to acquire a yellowish color.

First aid for a bruised forearm

If symptoms appear, the patient must be given first aid. This can be done at home. To do this, apply a cold compress to the bruised area. You can make it yourself using cotton cloth and ice, which is wrapped in it.

Cold helps reduce pain, swelling and minimizes the risk of hematoma.

It is important not to overexpose the ice compress to avoid skin necrosis due to frostbite. The maximum time to use a cold compress is 15 minutes. It is also not recommended to apply ice to the bruised area without using a cloth, i.e. You need to wrap the cold or frozen object in a towel or purchase a special ice pack from the pharmacy.

The hand itself must be immobilized; for this you can use a scarf. You should not massage the bruised area; this can lead to even greater damage to the soft tissue. The patient may be given a pain reliever to relieve pain. This has virtually no effect on further diagnosis, since more informative methods are used to make an accurate diagnosis than simple visual and manual examination.

In this case, taking aspirin should be avoided. Acetylsalicylic acid thins the blood, which may increase bleeding. To stop it, you will need medical care in a hospital.

After providing first aid, the patient must go to a medical facility.

Treatment

The therapeutic direction begins with immobilizing the sore arm: applying a bandage, a special orthopedic product, and in difficult cases, a splint. To reduce swelling, the limb must be fixed in a slightly elevated state. It is forbidden to massage the affected area - additional blood flow will lead to massive hematomas and tumors.

Reducing the level of pain and swelling of tissues is achieved with cold compresses. The duration of one procedure should not exceed 20 minutes - if the time is exceeded, hypothermia may occur. Ice or other items from the freezer are covered with a cotton cloth before applying - there should be no direct contact with the skin. If possible, it is allowed to use ready-made hypothermic packages sold in pharmacies.

To suppress painful sensations, analgesics and drugs of the NSAID subgroup can be used: Analgin, Baralgin, Tempalgin, Ibuprofen, Mig, Nurofen. Doctors warn that all products based on acetylsalicylic acid are strictly prohibited - they can cause prolonged bleeding: Aspirin and its derivatives.

If a bacterial infection is associated with the problem, the patient is prescribed an individual course of antibiotic therapy.

Physiotherapy is recommended for use one week after injury. If the forearm is bruised, it has rehabilitation functions that allow you to restore the functionality of the injured limb. Frequently used techniques include electrophoresis, magnetic therapy, and electrical stimulation. If there are positive dynamics from the ongoing therapeutic measures, massage sessions and physical therapy are added to the main therapy.

Surgical correction is recommended in difficult cases when a compaction is detected deep in the soft tissues that cannot be treated with standard methods. The cause of the complication is calcification of the hematoma; the intervention does not require hospitalization of the victim.

Treatment of forearm bruises

When an accurate diagnosis is established, the patient needs conservative treatment, which is mainly aimed at restoring the function of the affected arm and eliminating existing symptoms.

It is not much different from first aid.

So, how to treat a bruised forearm:

• Apply cold for 15 minutes 3-4 times during the first 6-12 hours;
• Apply a bandage, thereby creating peace and limiting movements (in case of severe bruises and severe pain);
• Painkillers (NSAIDs), for example one of these: Movalis, Nise, Nurofen, Ketorol, 1 tablet up to 2 times a day, no more than 5 days;
• Anesthetic ointments, for example: Dolobene gel, Traumeel, Voltaren, apply topically 2-3 times a day until the symptoms stop (disappear);
• Physical therapy may be prescribed to help reduce swelling and pain.

Almost all bruises pass without a trace, but with serious bruises there may be some consequences.

Diagnostic measures

When contacting a local trauma center, the patient is sent for an instrumental examination in order to identify the type of injury present. Differential diagnosis allows you to distinguish a bruise of the forearm from fractures, dislocations, sprains, and ruptures.

To clarify the pathology, the patient undergoes:

• X-ray images - allow you to exclude the fact of a fracture, show where exudate accumulates;
• Ultrasound is a technique necessary to study the condition of soft and bone tissues;
• CT or MRI - give a detailed picture of the condition of the upper limb, showing hidden bleeding, hematomas, cracks.

After confirmation of a forearm injury, the patient receives a regimen of the necessary therapy.

Consequences of bruises

Usually everything goes away without consequences. In particular, this applies to injuries that are not accompanied by complications. Most often, symptoms disappear within 2-3 weeks, depending on the severity of the bruise.

However, in rare cases, serious consequences of such an injury can occur. For example, calcification of a hematoma. In this case, the compaction in the soft tissues does not resolve and causes pain.

If the hematoma does not resolve on its own, a compaction forms in its place, and the patient may require surgical intervention. The operation is performed on an outpatient basis and does not take much time.

In rare cases, in patients the injury is accompanied by myositis ossificans, that is, inflammation of the muscle. In this case, small areas of ossification appear in the thickness of the muscle.

Sometimes severe forms of bruises are accompanied by trauma to the periosteum, and bone growths may form. All these consequences require longer treatment and rehabilitation.

Sources of development

The leading sources of development of forearm bruises include:

• injuries associated with falls on a straight upper limb;
• contact with hard objects;
• falling things with a lot of weight onto the forearm area.

The complexity of the pathological process depends on the type and weight of the traumatic object and the speed of its fall. Bruises can be combined with many injuries, which include open wound surfaces, violation of the integrity of bone tissue, and dislocations. Lesions may be accompanied by inflammatory reactions in the joint apparatus, muscle tissue, and ruptures of the tendon-ligamentous apparatus.

Rehabilitation after a forearm injury

Recovery is aimed at restoring full motor function of the right or left hand. To do this, 10-12 days after the lesion, a course of exercise therapy is prescribed. Usually, no further rehabilitation procedures are prescribed.

Also, one of the serious consequences of a forearm injury is a violation of the integrity of large vessels, the formation of blood clots and even blood clots, with the subsequent occurrence of a serious disease - thromboembolism, which, in turn, leads to heart attacks, strokes and other serious consequences.

Despite the apparent simplicity of the injury, forearm bruises should not be underestimated. If symptoms occur, you should seek help from a medical facility.

Shoulder bruise: what to do if a joint or muscle is injured?

Despite the fact that the shoulder joint is surrounded by a massive muscle layer, it can also be subject to injury. But not every one of them leads to a violation of the integrity of the articular elements. Sometimes the damage is limited only to subcutaneous hemorrhage, while the functions of the limb are completely preserved.64

With a true bruise of the joint, damage occurs not only to the periarticular tissues, but also to other elements. Most often, the joint capsule is injured, and the integrity of the synovial membrane is damaged.64

Many injuries to the shoulder joint are accompanied by hemorrhage into the joint cavity. This complication can be recognized by limited pain, pronounced smoothness of the contours of the joint, and limited mobility. The blood must be removed, because if it remains in the joint cavity for a long time, chronic reactive inflammation may begin. This is due to the fact that when red blood cells are destroyed, hemoglobin is converted into hemosiderin, which is a provocateur of the inflammatory process.41, 64

With bruises, muscle damage quite often occurs, which is also accompanied by limited swelling, pain, and hematoma. For severe injuries, it is recommended to limit the mobility of the injured limb for 2-3 days. The use of a pressure bandage for muscle injuries is not justified.41, 64