When to go to the ER: Facial lacerations
As explained by the subject matter experts over at the excellent frontlineer.com, a facial laceration is a tear or cut in the skin located on the face and head. Such cuts may be caused by a sharp object or due to blunt trauma. People mostly suffer facial lacerations through fights, car and bike accidents, when playing sports and so forth. Facial lacerations are always a cause for concern, especially due to the fact that the face has tremendous cosmetic value. No one wants to have ugly scars on their face as a result of such lacerations. However, the impact of such lacerations goes well beyond the aesthetics of the face as, due to the proximity of key body parts such as the eyes and even the brain, such injuries may lead to impaired function of these important body parts. There are lots of cases of people who have lost their eyesight due to facial lacerations and injuries. While minor scrapes may be handled at home or at an urgent care clinic, facial lacerations should always be handled at the ER, and this article, with help from the gurus over at frontlineer.com, will look to take a closer look at these injuries and the signs that you need to head over to the ER for the same.
One of the instances when facial lacerations should lead to a visit to the ER is if one has suffered a cut on their eyelid. As discussed in detail over at the excellent frontlineer.com, cuts on the eyelid should always be taken very seriously given the risk of impairing the function of the eye. One may suffer such an injury through blunt trauma to the eye, like say after getting punched, through a fall or through a car or bike accident among others. Eye lacerations should always need to be attended to at the ER as any misstep here could lead to damage to the eye. ER physicians, including those over at frontlineer.com, are highly skilled and experienced to be able to comfortably handle these injuries, not to mention the fact that there are experts there if required for complex cases. You should also go to the ER for lacerations that, although not on the eye and eyelid, are close to it. Examples of how such injuries may occur is when one falls when wearing glasses and the glass shatters and cuts them just beneath the eye, or if one gets hit or punched just beneath the eye. As per the gurus over at frontlineer.com, such lacerations should be taken seriously given the potential damage to underlying structures such as the tear ducts that are located around there among others. Don’t take such lacerations lightly.
Other than cuts on and around the eye, another reason to go to the ER for face lacerations is due to severe bleeding. As covered in detail over at the excellent frontlineer.com, the face has a relatively large blood supply despite its relatively small size and is served by an extensive network of blood vessels. This means that lacerations to the face are always likely to come with some bleeding. If the bleeding is severe and is unable to be stemmed despite applying pressure for 10 to 15 minutes, then one should ensure that they head over to the ER as soon as possible to be assessed. Facial lacerations can also cause internal bleeding given the complex nature of blood vessels on the face, which is why such lacerations should always be attended to at the ER. Also look out for numbness of paralysis on your face after suffering facial lacerations and injuries. This is usually due to damage of the facial nerve, which is part of the cranial nerves, and which supplies the vast majority of motor function in the face. If you begin to experience such sensations, then you should head over to the ER, such as the highly rated frontlineer.com, as soon as you can to be attended to.
Another major concern when it comes to face lacerations is fractures on the skull, which should always be taken seriously for obvious reasons. While the skull is pretty sturdy and strong, depending on the amount of force exerted, it can still be fractured. Facial lacerations caused by high impact such as from car or bike accidents can cause the skull to fracture especially when one is hit on the forehead. One can also fracture their facial bones like the cheek bones when they suffer facial lacerations. As per discussions on the same over at frontlineer.com, severe pain and obvious disfigurement are some of the signs of such fractures, especially when it comes to fractures of the cheek bones where you are likely to notice that there is a dent on your cheeks. Such injuries should be taken very seriously and one should head over to the ER as soon as possible. The gurus over at frontlineer.com also point out that severe lacerations on the lips and the mouth’s soft tissues should also be taken seriously and should lead to a visit to the ER. These injuries are sometimes accompanied by a tooth being knocked out, something which should also be taken very seriously, especially when dealing with a permanent tooth; efforts should be made to try and save the knocked-out tooth.
As always, if you need more information on this and other related topics, don’t forget to head over to the excellent frontlineer.com, where you will also have access to the best emergency medical services around.
