Dermatology-Online

Stab wound

What is a stab wound?

Puncture wounds are caused by sharp objects such as needles, knives or scissors that pierce the skin and lead to considerable damage in deeper tissue layers. In the case of injuries of this kind, there is a great risk of infection, since pathogenic agents can be introduced into deeper tissue during the sting process or the wound can subsequently become inflamed due to contamination.

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Causes of a stab wound

Stab wounds can have a variety of causes. They do not always have to be caused by deliberate bodily harm during acts of violence. Small accidents also occur in everyday situations, such as a small stitch on the thorn of a flower or a stitch with a needle while sewing.

In medicine, stab wounds of this kind occur, for example, when blood is drawn. There are also sports accidents that are caused by stab wounds. During sporting activities, such as cycling, you may fall on a pointed object or the spikes on your shoes while playing football can lead to a stab injury.

Concomitant symptoms

Accompanying symptoms of a stab wound include pain and usually only a small wound on the surface of the skin. The degree of pain depends on the severity of the stab injury. Deep injuries to organs, muscles, tendons or even bones can usually hardly be seen from the outside.

With such puncture wounds, it is very dangerous that pathogens have penetrated the wound or blood vessels in deeper tissue layers can be damaged.

Pain

In the case of a stab injury that has led to the formation of a stab wound, the affected people complain of pain of various intensities, depending on the severity of the injury. Although deeper damage is hardly noticeable and in many cases associated with less bleeding, it usually causes more pain than smaller stab wounds.

This is mainly due to the fact that deeper injuries have broken through larger layers of tissue and accordingly also caused greater damage.

diagnosis

The diagnosis of stab wounds can be made quite easily based on the associated symptoms, the characteristics of the wound and the circumstances of the accident. Extensive physical examinations are performed to assess the extent and depth of the wound.

If the chest is injured, x-rays are taken to diagnose injuries to the lungs or possibly air leakage.

treatment

Treating a simple wound is very different from treating a severe stab wound. To stop the bleeding for the moment, the wound should be held above the heart position, as gravity will reduce the flow of blood to the site of the injury. In addition, the object that was stabbed must not be pulled out of the wound.

This could squeeze a blood vessel, which could lead to internal bleeding when the object is removed. The object can only be pulled out by a doctor. A bandage or a pressure bandage is put on by the healthcare professional to stop the bleeding.

For more severe internal stab injuries, surgery is scheduled. In the course of such an operation, the puncture canal is cut out and the wound is rinsed. After a possible infection has been ruled out, the wound is sewn up, but the wound secretion should be able to drain away.

If the doctor determines that there is a risk of infection, the wound must heal openly. The injury must be carefully checked every day. If stab wounds are located in the abdominal cavity, it is opened in order to assess and treat the severity of the internal injuries.

When do I have to see a doctor with a stab wound?

In order to be able to assess when a stab wound should be treated by a doctor, one should above all consider the course of the accident. Serious knife wounds or stabs with an iron bar usually cause serious internal injuries that must be treated by an experienced doctor.

If the bleeding cannot be stopped or if the wound is bleeding spurting, a doctor should be consulted. Because the high blood loss could cause circulatory shock. In addition, a visit to the doctor is essential if you experience any sensory disturbances, paralysis or any restrictions in movement.

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Complications of a stab wound

Blood poisoning

Blood poisoning, also known as sepsis, is triggered by an infection with pathogens that cause disease. These pathogens are bacteria, viruses, fungi or parasites. Typical symptoms of sepsis are very high fever with chills, a racing heart, great difficulty breathing and a drop in blood pressure.

Psychological changes can also occur. All of these symptoms do not have to occur at the same time and they are not limited to this disease. This is exactly what constitutes a problem for differentiating sepsis from other diseases. In case of doubt, a visit to the hospital can confirm the diagnosis.

Read more about this article below: Blood poisoning

Healing time

The healing time for puncture wounds varies and depends primarily on the type of wound. The rule is that the deeper and larger a wound, the longer the healing time.

Another factor that prolongs the healing process is, in addition to alleged contamination of the injury, delayed wound treatment or accompanying injuries.