Dr's Casebook: What do the different bruise colours mean?
I have been wearing sunglasses over this last week. Protection against the very welcome sunshine had something to do with it, but it was also suitable disguise for the black eyes and swollen nose I sustained tripping in a rabbit hole.
Dr Keith Souter writes: It may sound an exaggeration to call it a sporting injury, but since it happened playing rounders I have massaged my ego by calling it that. It happened at a large family event and we were playing rounders in a newly mown field. As I was sprinting for base I tripped in an unseen rabbit hole and went sprawling, landing on my face and grazing the bridge of my nose.
There were jocular calls to fetch a steak for the doctor’s black eye, just as you always used to see in cartoons or comedy movies. As I recovered from momentary grogginess I waved the idea away. The nose was not broken as I was able to assure everyone, but I also told them that by the next day I would have classic black eyes.
Bruises occur when something damages small blood vessels in the skin. They typically change colour as they heal, at first appearing red, purple, or darker than the surrounding skin. They may then progress to blue, black, or green before fading into yellow.
Within 24 hours of an injury a bruise often starts red because the blood that leaches out is rich in oxygen. The red comes from the haemoglobin in the blood. Over the next day the blood loses oxygen and becomes darker. A couple of days later it will often appear blue or purple. As it fades from days five to ten it may start to turn yellow or green. These colours come from the breakdown of the haemoglobin in the skin into a compound called biliverdin, which gives it a greenish tinge, and then into bilirubin which makes it yellow. As you probably know bilirubin is the compound that causes jaundice.
Applying a steak is not recommended, since infection from bacteria is a risk.
Similarly, frozen peas are not a good idea. Instead, crushed ice in a bag, wrapped in a towel and applied for ten minutes, then repeated sometime later will cool and help reduce swelling.
It worked for my bruising. Well, apart from my bruised pride.