We often fall victim to bleeding into the skin or bruising that happens after we get injured. Generally, this problem is not so serious and can be easily treated at home. But when the skin bleeding becomes intense, spontaneous, or chronic, there can be serious consequences or complications. Let us learn about the causes and preventive measures of skin bleeding to avoid further complications, and to know the right timing to consult a doctor.
Bleeding into skin or hemorrhaging, takes place under the skin, causing the surrounding area to change color.
Whenever a blood vessel ruptures, it causes the blood to leak into the tissues and spaces nearby. This is basically what hemorrhaging is. When hemorrhaging takes place under the skin, the blood leaks to the skin nearby that causes darkening. Usually, this discoloration is a mixture of shades of red, blue, black, or purple.
The number and type of blood vessels that rupture thus has an impact on the size and appearance of the skin discoloration, along with the area covered by the bleeding. If you break a lesser number of small blood vessels or capillaries, you would get petechial lesions. They are tiny red dots that are less than 2 mm in width that is visible on the skin's surface.
But in case a larger number of capillaries rupture in the same area, it will result in something known as purpura. If you have purpura, then you will most likely get a reddish-purple discoloration, whose sizes vary between 2 mm and 1 cm in width. If ever many numbers of capillaries break close together, the blood would pool under the surface of the skin forming an ecchymosis which is a bluish-purple or black bruise that occurs in a wide range of sizes.
Majority of these bruises appear to be in a reddish color, which would then gradually transform to a darker black-blue shade when a few hours have passed. When the bruises slowly start to heal, they then change again appearing in a shade of purple for some time. This will eventually change color to appear as a greenish-yellow color. Skin bruises will turn out quite tender and even have a slight swelling.
Based on how serious they are, bruises can change in a matter of a few hours, days or even weeks. A moderate bruise would usually take around 14 days to heal up completely. Unfortunately, bruises in the lower legs take a longer time to heal. Bruises usually appear in body parts like the breasts or eye areas where blood can pool up easily. When a bruise occurs in body tissues or cavities, it is known as a hematoma, which is actually a health threat.
While the causes of bruises may vary from person to person, one of the main causes behind it would definitely have to be sports. Playing contact sports has got to be the most common reason as to why people end up having bleeding under their skin. If you are not living in a cloud or cotton, you will have an experience of bruising in your life for sure.
If you wish to know what are the other main causes of bruising, here they are : playing contact sports, exercising, hitting objects, falling down or slipping, putting on ill-fitting glasses, wearing sharp clothing or shoes, having allergic reactions, giving birth or birth itself, making use of medical devices like braces, crutches, or casts, and aging. Bruises can also be caused by the strains as a result of vomiting, coughing, or even crying.
There are many side-effects of bruising. They can be chemotherapy, radiation therapy, most surgeries, staying bedridden or in hospital. Various health conditions and medications may also contribute to the body's ability or disability to form blood clots which sometimes leads to sudden or severe bleeding and bruising.
While talking about bruising, there are a few things that can cause bleeding or bruising. They are leukemia systemic lupus erythematosus, hemophilia, kidney or liver disease, aplastic anemia, disseminated, intravascular coagulation, thrombotic thrombocytopenic purpura, hemolytic uremic syndrome, vitamin C, K, B12, or folic acid deficiency.
These are some other conditions that could potentially cause bleeding under the skin or bruises. They include vasculitis, meningitis, strep throat, blood infections, scarlet fever, infective endocarditis, enterovirus, Marfan syndrome, Ehlers-Danlos syndrome, von Willebrand's disease. People suffering from these medical complications are most likely to experience bruises.
There are some medications that raise the risk of bleeding and bruising too. They are nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), such as ibuprofen and diclofenac, blood-thinning medications and, anticoagulants such as aspirin, clopidogrel, apixaban, rivaroxaban, warfarin, and heparin, systemic or topical corticosteroids.
Some other reasons that are known to increase the risk of skin bleeding or bruising are playing contact sports, having a physical labor job like landscaping or building and old age, more precisely being over 65 years of age. Also, heavy alcohol intake, smoking or using tobacco products, using particular health supplements like fish oils, high-dose vitamin E, gingko biloba, St. John's wort, and even garlic.
To diagnose skin bleeding, doctors usually run physical tests on the bruises or lesions. Doctors also tend to look back on a person's medical history, inquiring about potential causes of the skin bleeding, all symptoms, including symptoms that could appear unrelated, medication use, like blood-thinning drugs and NSAIDs, injuries or surgery in the past, family medical history, herbal supplement intake or natural medications.
When a doctor sees that there are frequent bruising, the need to clarify whether it is caused by physical abuse and violence happens. When doctors are unable to specify causes, they might suspect a hidden medical condition or even opt for diagnostic tests like complete blood count test, platelet count test, coagulation test, urine analysis, bone marrow biopsy, X-ray, and ultrasound.
One good way to get instant healing is by applying an ice pack to the affected area for 10-15 minutes. Skin bleeding and bruising do not have a specific treatment or remedy but there are various ways to reduce them. Some home remedies are applying an ice pack to the area for 10–15 minutes quickly and then continuing this many times daily. Make sure to wrap the ice in cloth or plastic to avoid frostbite.
Some other helpful ways to reduce bruises would be keeping the injured areas elevated. Applying pressure to the bruised area, avoiding the injuries from exposure to hot showers, hot tubs, or saunas for 2 days after getting injured helps too. Another helpful remedy is applying a heated compress to the bleeding area for 20 minutes multiple times every day. Once the swelling has died down, massaging the affected area helps a lot too.
Also having lots of whole fruits and vegetables that are rich in antioxidants, such as vitamins A, C, D, and E helps while staying away from smoking or using tobacco products is advised. Avoiding alcohol and vigorous exercise for 24 hours, applying herbal gels and creams like arnica or vitamin K8 helps the bruises heal. Consuming 200–400 milligrams (mg) of bromelain three times a day. Serious cases of hematomas would, however, require surgical removal.
When you get a minor bleeding into the skin or bruising, it should not worry you too much. They mostly heal up pretty quickly. If in case a bruise occurs for no particular reason and remains for more than 2 weeks, doctors must be consulted. People using blood-thinning medications who go through frequent or severe bleeding or bruising must also get immediate medical attention.
Other cases of bruising that calls for the need of an expert's consultancy include extreme pain, blood in the stool or urine. We all know that if blood appears anywhere that is not normal. it usually means that something is terribly wrong. Also, bleeding gums, swollen extremities, darkening of the skin around the bruise after some time is also something that doctors need to look into.
Some other points to take seriously when it comes to bruises include, having a fever because of the bruises or nausea or vomiting. We must also be very alarmed when there is unnecessary bleeding, a large lump, dizziness or fainting, joint or bone pain in the body. For unexplainable bruising that occurs unexpectedly and intensely, medical attention must be given as soon as possible.