need quick help

[momofmine]

Hi there,
I need some quick advice. I am asking here, because I want to know how others, who do not have their kids vaxed for tetanus, would treat stuff like this. My 8 yr old was riding his bike and got a nasty scrape on his knee, in gravel. There is a pretty think flap of skin peeled away. The problem is that I can't get it totally clean. Underneath the flap, there is not any actual gravel or anything, it's just that it's kind of black.

We got in the tub, sprayed it off with the sprayer, did our best to wash it with soap and water, soaked it in the tub for a while. We tried putting a little bit of peroxide on it, but it really stung, so we rinsed it right off.

What would you do for stuff like this?

Thanks so much!!

[Devaskyla]

Leave it open to the air & try not to worry.

Sorry no one replied to you sooner.

[momofmine]

Thanks for replying! It just seems pretty deep. He tore a chunk out of his knee! I have used raw honey on wounds in the past, but this seems kind of deeper than anything we've had, and I wasn't sure whether or not to put something thick on it, like the honey.

I was thinking about either using colloidal silver or honey, but I thought maybe I should let it heal a bit before I put the honey on there.
Thanks for your assurance!

[aniT]

Did it bleed? If it did there is no reason to worry about tetanus. to your lil one.

[momofmine]

Originally Posted by aniT

Did it bleed? If it did there is no reason to worry about tetanus. to your lil one.

Thank you so much! Yes, it did bleed. In fact, it is still at times bleeding today, after we cleaned it out again, for example. And it is actually kind of weeping it seems.
Thank you!

[Gitti]

You have done everything just perfect. (Except the H2O2 evidently.)



There is virtually no chance of him getting tetanus and I would not at all worry about it.

Just keep it clean and watch for blood poisoning (but even this is rare). The symptom would be a red streak running up his thigh.

[CanidFL]

Sounds like you did everything right. I would have poured hydrogen peroxide on it though regardless of stinging. It shouldn’t actually sting that much though from personal experience. The bubbles sometimes look scary.

I never put honey on open wounds/burns. I just heard a really bad story that stuck in my mind and I will never put honey on wounds again but that is just me.

[taterbug1999]

We do Hydrogen peroxide on wounds stinging or not, but honey does have a natural non caustic form of hydrogen peroxide in it. It was used by the Egyptians (particularly Ohimneteph, sp?) who is alledged to be the real father of medicine except the records were destroyed by early Christians, I think it was. (History channel education ) They used it effectivley to treat lots and lots of serious injuries. I do honey on lots of stuff from zits to booboos. Another good thing is to soak the wound regularly so the outer layer doesn't "heal" completely before the underneath wound. This was really the best treatment pior to the creation of the vax (not that I like the vax, just other real options were abandoned). Severe wounds were "kept" open so they healed from the inside out.

[momofmine]

Thanks everyone for your replies. I have read many times that tetanus is not a risk especially if you do proper wound care, but what is proper wound care? How would you clean out or what would you do for deeper wounds, that are deeper than like an ordinary abrasion? Would you still pour peroxide on it, like even if fleshy stuff was exposed? Then would you keep cleaning it out a couple of times a day? Do you just use the peroxide at first?

Also, how often and what would you put on it daily? Things like tea tree oil, or the honey, or I also was told by someone today that yarrow is very good for wounds. The wound I am talking about here, for example, is not one that closed up right away, it is still open after a couple of days, and needing to be tended to. When I clean it off, it still has a small amount of blood or other fluid surface again, so I know it is not closed up yet.

I don't know whether to cover or leave it open. Most of the time, I leave stuff open to the air, but this being deeper made me think I should cover it some.

Thanks for your help folks.

[momofmine]

I was just reading on another thread about tetanus and burns, about how it is important to remove the dead skin, etc. Would you do that with a wound too? I left the flap of skin on there, because it tore almost completely away, but it was still securely attached at the bottom, and it seemed to kind of protect the fleshy exposed part. By now it is kind of stuck to the wound, and I don't think I would pull it away now.

[rredhead]

Tetanus bacteria are anaerobic. They cannot live in the presence of air. To get tetanus, one would have to get a deep puncture wound from something that was at the time buried in dirt or feces. Then, one would have to not clean the wound at all.
Tetanus is more prevalent in rural areas, and almost all cases are in senior citizens. The year before the vax came out, there were fewer than 1000 cases of tetanus in the US.
I did a lot of research on tetanus. Everyone makes you worry about it, but really , it just doesn't happen in kids.
Of course, I still have apoplexy if my son gets too close to barbed wire.

Hope this helps!

[forestrymom]

In a hospital setting, deep wounds are cleaned with sterile saline, generally flushed with a syringe so the force will help move debris away.

Originally Posted by momofmine

Thanks everyone for your replies. I have read many times that tetanus is not a risk especially if you do proper wound care, but what is proper wound care? How would you clean out or what would you do for deeper wounds, that are deeper than like an ordinary abrasion? Would you still pour peroxide on it, like even if fleshy stuff was exposed? Then would you keep cleaning it out a couple of times a day? Do you just use the peroxide at first?

Also, how often and what would you put on it daily? Things like tea tree oil, or the honey, or I also was told by someone today that yarrow is very good for wounds. The wound I am talking about here, for example, is not one that closed up right away, it is still open after a couple of days, and needing to be tended to. When I clean it off, it still has a small amount of blood or other fluid surface again, so I know it is not closed up yet.

I don't know whether to cover or leave it open. Most of the time, I leave stuff open to the air, but this being deeper made me think I should cover it some.

Thanks for your help folks.

[guest^]

How is your lo doing? Did you end up cutting the loose skin? Is it healing nicely?

(I am a meanie when it comes to wound care! I tell my DC they can either have me clean them up,or I will take them to the ER,and have a nurse or doctor do it. They *always* cooperate then. It sounds bad to threaten them like that,but I realized one time,I had to take the tough approach.)

mp

[momofmine]

Thanks so much for asking. When you say you are a meanie about wound care, what do you do exactly? I mean, do you actually scrub a wound with gauze or something, or just use peroxide? I am just gathering notes!

I am not sure what to do right now, actually. The flap of skin had partially re-adhered, towards the bottom, but I did cut the top part off. It was completely dead, and did not hurt to cut off. It has been ten days. It has at times had a very small amount of something that is like a film over it, either whitish or sometimes slightly yellow. It's not oozing pus, it doesn't smell, there's no redness or swelling. So I am trying hard to make sure it doesn't get infected. It seems when it's covered, it gets a bit more of the goopy stuff (still a very small amount though). Yet when I leave it open to the air, that stuff dries like a thin film on it, slightly yellowish. It is really not much at all, just a tiny bit. I am not really sure what to do. I am just watching it, keeping it clean, and trying different things. It does not bother him at all.