Toe Injury: What To Do And How To Treat At Home

2024 Author: Rachel Wainwright | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-15 07:39

Toe contusion: symptoms, first aid, treatment

The content of the article:

1. Anatomical and physiological features

   Toe functions

2. Symptoms

   Difference from fracture

3. First aid
4. Diagnostics

5. Treatment

   1. Drug therapy
   2. How to treat a bruised toe at home using folk methods
6. Possible consequences
7. Video

A bruised toe is a common household injury, less often a sports injury. It is characterized by damage to the soft tissues of the toe of the lower extremity and looks like an area of edema, cyanosis and hemorrhage, which can sometimes spread to the area of the foot. Trauma is usually accompanied by severe pain syndrome, limitation of movement.

A bruised toe is usually due to a household or sports injury

An injury occurs as a result of heavy objects falling on toes, hitting hard objects (for example, the legs of a table, chair, sofa), while working or playing sports.

Often with severe bruises, due to similar symptoms, it is difficult to make a differential diagnosis between a bruise and a fracture. Therefore, if you are injured, you need to seek help from an emergency room or other medical institution, where a traumatologist-orthopedist will conduct an examination, prescribe additional studies, correct treatment and give recommendations.

Anatomical and physiological features

Each toe has its own name: thumb, index, middle, ring and little fingers. All of them, except for the thumb, consist of 3 tubular bones, called phalanges: proximal (main), median and distal (terminal). The thumb has only 2 phalanges: proximal and distal. The phalanges have articular surfaces, in the place of which they are connected to each other by movable joints.

The bones of the toes are surrounded by a layer of fiber that houses the nerves and blood vessels

Each bone is surrounded by a layer of fiber, in the thickness of which, on the sides of the phalanges, there are vessels and nerves that provide innervation and blood supply to this zone. The dorsum and plantar surfaces have tendons that attach to the nail and middle phalanges.

In terms of the degree of innervation and blood supply, the lower limbs are inferior to the upper ones. This should be especially taken into account in case of bruised injuries to the toes of elderly patients and people with the following diseases:

• diabetes;
• atherosclerosis;
• obliteration of the arteries;
• varicose veins of the legs;
• other concomitant diseases that impair blood flow to the lower extremities.

In the absence of adequate first aid and proper treatment, patients with these pathologies increase the risk of complications, the development of trophic ulcers, the addition of bacterial and fungal infections, etc.

The trigger mechanism leading to exarticulation or amputation at various levels of the lower limb in patients with diabetes mellitus is bruised damage to these parts, especially with a violation of the integrity of the skin.

Another feature is the presence of denser skin in comparison with the skin of the fingers. This aggravates the course of bruised wounds, due to increased tension in the damaged area and increased pain.

Toe functions

As an important part of the musculoskeletal system, the toes perform the following functions:

1. Maintaining coordination during movement when the center of gravity changes.
2. Participation with the foot in taking body weight while walking, running and other movements.

Symptoms

Immediately after the injury, the patient feels intense pain, which subsides after a while and progressively resumes as the swelling increases.

The visually damaged finger is bluish, swollen, and enlarged. In case of trauma to the nail phalanx, a subungual hemorrhage may occur (hematoma, bruise, which is clearly visible even in the photo).

Injury may result in subungual hemorrhage.

Motor activity in the affected area is sharply reduced, the patient tries to spare her as much as possible. Any pressure, tension and attempt at movement provokes intense sharp pain. The patient tries to move from the affected side on the heel, isolating the injured part of the foot as much as possible.

Difference from fracture

Signs of a finger fracture:

• Abnormal mobility (pathological), in which the finger moves in an uncharacteristic place (where there is no joint);
• audible crunch (crepitus);
• abnormal (unnatural) position of the foot or its sections.

A bruise must be differentiated from a fracture

Relative (doubtful) signs can be considered severe pain, poorly controlled by non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, rapidly increasing edema and cyanosis.

A bruised big toe can be difficult to distinguish from a marginal fracture, which often occurs while running.

It is characterized by massive edema and cyanosis, extending to almost the entire foot. The patient experiences intense pain, because of which he cannot step on the leg, tries to spare the leg as much as possible. The above signs characteristic of a fracture may also be present.

First aid

The injured limb must be immediately rinsed with plenty of cold water by placing the injured area under a stream. This is done for several purposes:

• vasoconstriction;
• anesthesia;
• removal of contaminants (if necessary).

Next, you need to give the damaged area an elevated position, apply cold (an ice pack, a bottle of cold water, etc.)

If there is a partial detachment of the nail plate, after treatment with an antiseptic, the finger must be carefully bandaged to prevent further injury and aggravation of the condition. It is not recommended to use a plaster, since when trying to remove it, it is possible to capture the nail plate with its further detachment.

When a subungual hematoma forms, it is forbidden to open it yourself.

After providing first aid, it is necessary to contact a traumatologist as soon as possible for further diagnosis and treatment.

Diagnostics

In a medical institution, a doctor, relying on complaints, anamnesis, mechanism of injury, examination, establishes a preliminary diagnosis.

To clarify the diagnosis, you should consult a doctor

Often, X-ray diagnostic methods, namely radiography or computed tomography of the foot, can be prescribed to exclude or confirm a fracture.

Treatment

Usually, the treatment is conservative, outpatient.

In the presence of subcutaneous hemorrhage, the hematoma is opened and removed. If it is large, the entire nail plate is removed, the wound is washed with an antiseptic and a sterile bandage is applied.

If necessary, immobilization of the affected part is performed

It is recommended to avoid stress on the affected area, keep it in an elevated position.

For massive, large bruises, complete immobilization of the affected part is recommended.

Drug therapy

In order to relieve pain with a bruised toe, the use of analgesic drugs (NSAIDs) is shown: Ibuprofen, Nurofen, Ketorolac, Diclofenac and others.

To relieve pain, external non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs are prescribed, for example, Diclofenac gel

They are used in several dosage forms: in the form of tablets, capsules, rectal suppositories, ointments, gels for external use. It is allowed to smear the affected area with agents for external use only in the absence of open wounds.

How to treat a bruised toe at home using folk methods

The most effective folk recipes:

Recipe	Description
Plantain leaf compresses	Grind 2-3 plantain leaves until gruel and briefly apply to the injured area 2-3 times a day
Fresh onion lotions	Chop the onion on a grater, collect the gruel in cheesecloth and attach to the damaged area

It should be noted that compresses are allowed only for mild bruises, without hematoma and damage to the skin, making sure that there is no bone fracture.

Possible consequences

Even minor bruises do not guarantee the absence of further serious consequences, among them: panaritium, osteomyelitis, arthritis, foot defects and deformities, in severe cases, sepsis and other pathological conditions.

Timeliness of diagnosis, adequacy of first aid and further treatment significantly reduce the risk of complications and accelerate the healing process.

Video

We offer for viewing a video on the topic of the article.

Anna Kozlova Medical journalist About the author

Education: Rostov State Medical University, specialty "General Medicine".

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