Panaritium in a child is a purulent-inflammatory disease localized in the soft tissues of the fingers and toes, developing when pathogenic bacteria penetrate injured skin (scratches, abrasions, etc.). If parents notice that the child’s finger has acquired a reddish tint, is swollen, and purulent fluid is oozing from it, they should immediately consult a doctor.
However, this disease poses a particular danger to children under one year of age. This is due to a fragile immune system, which is not able to resist streptococci (the causative agents of the process). If timely and correct treatment is not started, complications can quickly develop in the form of damage to the tendons, joints and bone tissue of the finger. It is not difficult to suspect that something is hurting a child, even if the problem affects infants. Children become restless, capricious, sleep poorly, and sometimes develop a fever. The presented symptoms are related, but if they are present, parents should definitely go to the pediatrician.
The main reason why felon develops in a child is infection of the soft tissues of the finger with staphylococcus (including aureus), E. coli and streptococcus. However, doctors identify a number of provoking factors, under the influence of which the presented disease also develops. These reasons include:
If we turn to medical statistics, doctors draw the attention of parents to the fact that a common cause of felon in children is fungal infection of the skin and nail plates. But one should not discount the individual characteristics of children's skin, which at this age is characterized by insufficient thickness and increased vulnerability (not resistance) to injury, and children, as we know, are always active and very mobile.
Before starting treatment, doctors must determine the type of disease, adhering to the typical classification of panaritium by type:
In addition to the main classification, doctors call a separate type of panaritium herpetic. From the name it becomes clear that the disease occurs against the background of activation of the herpes virus in the body, in particular, the soft tissues of the toes are damaged, and a rash appears. Treatment for this panaritium will also be specific.
The fact that it is necessary to treat a child for felon will be indicated by symptoms characteristic of this disease. Among them, the most striking are:
If parents detect panaritium in a newborn or a child of the first year of life, as well as in older children, treatment should begin immediately. The first step should be actions aimed at disinfection: it is necessary to treat the wound with an antiseptic, which is on hand, and take the child to the hospital for a medical consultation as soon as possible.
In most clinical cases, doctors identify periungual and subcutaneous panaritium in children, but in infants cases of diagnosing a deep type of disease are not uncommon. In this case, the child begins to be very capricious, refuses to eat and sleep, cries constantly, and his body temperature rises. In the area of the affected finger, all the symptoms described above are observed.
Before you begin to treat a child, it is necessary to accurately diagnose the disease. In the case of panaritium, this is not so difficult, therefore, a visual examination of the patient by a specialist is often sufficient. The doctor pays attention to the condition of the skin in the area of the affected finger, and also evaluates the patient’s reaction to palpation of the affected area (especially important for children who cannot yet speak). If a child over the age of three falls ill, then such patients can independently describe everything they feel and tell how and what hurts.
The next stage of diagnosis is the collection of anamnesis, which falls on the shoulders of the parents. The doctor will definitely ask when the symptoms of the disease were first identified (pain, swelling, redness of the skin of the finger), how long the pathological process lasted, whether there was an increase in body temperature, and whether there were changes in the child’s behavior. Therefore, parents must prepare and remember everything well; the duration of therapy and its correctness will depend on this.
In situations where the doctor suspects that the process has developed deeply enough and could have spread to the bones, tendons or joints, the child will be shown an X-ray examination of the damaged finger. In addition, with the help of x-rays, existing complications will be determined (if they exist, of course). The diagnostic complex also includes donating blood for laboratory testing and clarifying the type of pathogenic microorganism that affected the finger. This, in turn, will make it possible to understand whether bacterial treatment is necessary.
As for treatment tactics, it directly depends on the patient’s age, the degree of complexity of the purulent-inflammatory process and its type. Naturally, parents should not delay visiting a doctor, and it is important to begin therapy on the same day as symptoms of panaritium were identified. If all medical recommendations are followed, then, in most cases, there is no need to place the child in a hospital, and all manipulations can be carried out on an outpatient basis, that is, at home.
The most effective treatment is baths prepared according to folk recipes, or from remedies prescribed by the attending physician. They can be made with herbs, soda or salt. It is also good to practice applying cold compresses to the injured finger. If treatment is carried out by taking baths, then their duration should not exceed 10 minutes, and the water should be made warm, but not hot.
Antibiotic-based ointments relieve inflammation well and help clear purulent fluid: Levomikol or Ichthyol ointment (they are used in the form of compresses). If we talk about Levomikol, then it should be applied under a gauze bandage or bandage, then left for a long time (possibly overnight), which will help draw out the pus. However, parents should be especially careful when treating infants with this remedy because of this. That a child may lick a finger with medicine, which will lead to intoxication.
If the case is quite complex and conservative methods fail, the child will be prescribed surgical treatment.
At first glance, felon of the finger is a simple and non-dangerous disease. This forces parents to postpone the visit to a specialist and treat the child with improvised means. With this approach, each of them must remember that in the absence of correct and timely treatment, there is a high probability of developing severe complications that will require long-term and complex therapy. The first thing that can happen is the spread of the purulent-inflammatory process into the deep layers of the skin, and in infants this happens quite quickly.
Among the most terrible and dangerous complications, doctors identify:
However, after familiarizing yourself with the complications, you should not immediately panic. The health of a child always depends on the correct actions of the parents and the qualifications of the doctor. If a specialist advises carrying out therapy with certain means, you do not need to select analogues yourself, otherwise you can only harm your baby. Also, do not be afraid of surgical treatment, because this approach may be the only way to save a life. Timely seeking help is the key to successful treatment.
How to treat a bruised toe? This question interests many patients with this problem. Toes are not immune to injury. A bruised toe is an injury that occurs quite often. Most often, the nature of such injury is domestic. Sometimes it happens that, through negligence, we touch our toes on objects, and then a feeling of severe pain arises in the injured toe.
But sometimes it’s not limited to feeling pain. If your toes collide with a hard object, you can get a fracture. To rule out the possibility of serious injury, you should consult a doctor. The specialist will order an x-ray and explain how seriously the finger is damaged. If the injury is not serious, you can deal with it at home.
The skeleton of the toes consists of short tubular bones. They form phalanges. Each finger has three phalanges. The thumb has a different structure - it has only two phalanges, the middle one is missing.
During human life, the load on the toes is minimal, however, they have movable joints. During walking, the phalanges are set in motion with the help of tendons, the work of which is carried out by the muscles of the lower leg.
The feet perform a very important function - they serve as support and allow a person to walk. In a standing position, a person has the opportunity to make movements, for example, raising his toes from the fulcrum.
The toes serve to balance the body while walking. They allow you to maintain balance if you need to bend forward.
When the toes are bruised, the skin and fiber are damaged. The moment of injury is accompanied by severe pain, which then passes. However, after some time, swelling begins to develop at the site of the injury, which can also be accompanied by pain.
Pain occurs due to disruption of the normal functioning of soft tissues. At the time of injury, not only they suffer, but also the vessels, which is accompanied by the formation of a hematoma.
If the area closest to the bones is damaged, this can lead to a crack or even fracture of the phalanx of the finger, and the area of skin becomes dead.
If you have injured your toe or bruised your finger, you should undergo an examination. This will help distinguish a domestic injury from a fracture or dislocation.
If the injury is minor, then damage to the phalanges of the fingers or toes can be pinpoint. However, if the bruise was severe, then damage to the tissues located in the area of injury can often be observed. Sometimes the nail plate may peel off at the site of the injury. This happens because a bruise begins to form.
According to the medical classification, bruises have several degrees of severity:
It is easy to distinguish a bruise from a fracture or dislocation. If the fingers move normally, then it is a bruise. If there is no mobility of the fingers, then you should consult a doctor. In order to get rid of pain, you need to apply a cold compress or a clean cloth soaked in cold water. The compress should be changed every 10 minutes.
If there are scratches or wounds, they need to be treated. It is best to use hydrogen peroxide or another antiseptic. After treatment, apply a bandage.
If there is damage to the joint, the bandage should be tight. In order to avoid blood stagnation, the foot should be elevated. It is recommended to apply bruise ointment as a pain reliever. If there is bleeding, you should not take aspirin, as it thins the blood.
If the integrity of the nail plate is damaged, then you need to fix it with an adhesive plaster. Perhaps it will grow together. If there is a suspicion of a serious injury, then you should not forcefully try to bend and straighten your toes. Most likely it is a fracture or crack.
The phalanges of the fingers have the same structure as the legs. If the thumb is bruised, the same measures are taken. Treatment for a bruise also consists of ensuring that the injured limb remains at rest. It is advisable to elevate the leg to avoid swelling.
Thus, one of the important tasks is to provide first aid to the patient.
If severe pain bothers you, you should take analgin or solpadeine, after which you should treat the bruise with an ointment with an anti-inflammatory effect. If you suffer from diabetes, you should avoid cold compresses.
If a bruise on the hand or little toe occurs in children, they should be shown to a doctor, since their foot bones are more fragile and symptoms of a fracture may not be noticed on their own.
Traditional medicine can provide equally effective help for severe bruises. It is not always possible to have the necessary drug in the first aid kit at the right time. In this case, you can use folk remedies.
Plantain leaves and fresh cabbage can help with a bruised little finger or hand.
From badyagi powder you can prepare a mixture in the form of a paste. It is applied to the sore finger, and then a bandage is applied. However, it is worth remembering that if the symptoms indicate a fracture, then medicinal herbs will not help.
Injuries to the fingers and toes are not uncommon and are experienced by many people. This can happen completely unexpectedly, so you need to know how to provide timely help.