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Managing your child's cuts and scrapeshome > child health > childrens cuts and scrapesHaving your child walk the house crying and holding a bleeding elbow is enough to send any parent into a panic. For most basic surface cuts, a parent's job is simply to ensure that no glass, dirt or foreign material remains in the wound by using cool running water to flush it out. Tweezers may be needed in certain cases. Once that's done, applying direct pressure to the wound with a clean bandage or towel will usually be enough to stop the bleeding. Washing the wound with soap and water once the bleeding stops - or soaking it in the tub if the child really objects - is the final step. However, if the bleeding doesn't stop after ten minutes, it's a sure sign that a doctor may be needed. Keep in mind that any cut that is more than a quarter inch deep and has jagged edges will likely require stitches. Cuts to the face, eyelids, lips or the palm side of hands will also require sutures and should be handled in an emergency room within eight hours of the incident in order to avoid visible scarring down the line. In less serious cases, it's always best to leave those tiny cuts and scrapes exposed to the air. Bandages only slow down the rate of healing. While Polysporin and Bacitracin can help eliminate infection, the last thing you want to do is douse your child's open wound with rubbing alcohol, hydrogen peroxide or iodine. Not only will these slow healing, but they're actually quite painful. And more pain is the last thing an already shaken child - and perhaps a frightened parent - needs. |
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