What Colour Are Blood Blisters Meant To Be
In the initial stages, a blood blister looks red. Then as the blood dries and coagulates over time, is goes a purple or black. You can read more about the colours of blisters here.
Caution: If you notice a black spot on your foot, be mindful there are other potential diagnoses other than a blood blister. Of highest importance would be melanoma. If there has been no trauma to have caused a blood blister, please consult your doctor to rule out melanoma.
Why My Broken Toe Is Not Healing
You can tell that your toe is broken by the swelling, stiffness and bruising on the injured toe. A serious breakage will even leave the toe in a deformed state. Usually, the broken toe should heal within six weeks. For broken toe not healing after four weeks, the reason could be one of these:
You Use the Crutches in the Wrong Way
If you are using crutches, it is important to learn exactly how to use them. The correct way to use crutches is to hold them on the side opposite the broken toe. This might seem to be a minor issue but could easily lead to a lifetime of pain on the broken toe. The reason for this is that the natural movement of the foot will be affected if the crutches are used wrongly. The result will be inactivity on the foot which will lead to Complex Regional Pain Syndrome . Others will refer to this condition as Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy , but its basically the same thing. RDS can lead to a lot of pain even after your toe is completely healed.
You Develop a Bone Atrophy
Another possible reason as to why you have a broken toe not healing after a long time could be that you haven’t used your toe for far too long. Although you experience pain when walking on your injured toe, you should allow it some activity. Otherwise, you can expect your toe to develop a sickly appearance in a few months as a result of bone atrophy, which develops on injured or diseased body organs after a long period of non use.
You Have an Infection
How Do I Take Care Of My Foot And Toe Ulcers
Your healthcare provider might teach you how to care for your ulcers at home. You might be instructed to:
- Wash the affected area with mild soap.
- Keep the wound clean and dry.
- Change the bandages as directed.
- Take prescribed medications as directed.
- Drink plenty of fluids. Ask your healthcare provider how much water you should drink every day.
- Follow a healthy diet, as recommended by your healthcare provider.
- Exercise regularly, under your healthcare providers care.
- Wear appropriate shoes.
- Wear compression wraps as directed.
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The Bottom Line: Find Holistic Treatment For Wounds That Wont Heal
A non-healing wound isnt like an ear infection that disappears with a single round of antibiotics. Its a serious and complex condition that requires dedicated holistic treatment to heal. That is why its so important to find an experienced wound care specialist who can help you address your non-healing wounds.
The team at R3 Wound Care and Hyperbarics offers state-of-the-art HBOT treatments designed to address your unique medical needs and help you enjoy your life without the hindrance and dangers of wounds that wont heal.
Better yet, the team at R3 Wound Care doesnt simply offer HBOT and send you home we specialize in creating customized, holistic treatment plans that address the root causes of your non-healing wound and help you protect your body from injuries in the future. Using the healing power of hyperbaric oxygen therapy and evidence-based wound-healing techniques, we can help you experience the healing your body needs.
R3 has offices in the following locations of Texas: Fort Worth , Dallas , San Antonio, and Houston .
Causes Of Chronic Wounds
- Being immobile , where persistent localised pressure restricts blood flow
- Significant trauma injury to the skin
- Surgery incisions may become infected and slow to heal
- Underlying medical conditions such as diabetes or some types of vascular disease
- Specific types of infection such as the Bairnsdale or Buruli ulcers
- Trophic ulcers, where a lack of sensation allows everyday trauma to lead to an ulcer such as in diabetic neuropathy and leprosy.
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How To Treat A Cut On The Bottom Of A Toe
Treating a cut on the bottom of a toe is just like treating a cut anywhere else, with one significant difference. Since so much pressure is put on them during the day, they need extra protection to keep from getting re-opened or infected. Here’s how to do it.
If you are experiencing serious medical symptoms, seek emergency treatment immediately.
Examine the cut. Is it deep or shallow? Is it long or short? Is it clean, or dirty? is there anything in it? Is it bleeding and, if so, how badly.
If the cut is bleeding badly, the first matter is to stop the blood flow. Wrap a bandage moderately tightly around it, and elevate the foot by putting it up on a table or chair. Sterile gauze is the best way to stop the bleeding, but a paper towel or even a T-shirt will do in a pinch.
Once the bleeding has slowed, or if it was not bad to begin with, walk to the bathroom, taking care to put as little pressure on the wound as possible. If possible, have someone else support you so you don’t have to walk on the toe.
Clean the cut with a cloth. Wipe gently around the surrounding area and the cut itself, cleaning away any blood or dirt. Pat it dry.
Sterilize the cut with an antiseptic. This will hurt, but you need to do it to avoid an infection. Rubbing alcohol works well. Hydrogen peroxide is excellent, but it will hurt a lot.
Put on some antibiotic ointment, such as Neosporin. Be sure to cover the cut completely.
Warnings
Tips For Healthy Feet
Get to the bottom of any foot problems by using a mirror or asking for help.
Check your feet every day for cuts, redness, swelling, sores, blisters, corns, calluses, or any other change to the skin or nails. Use a mirror if you cant see the bottom of your feet, or ask a family member to help.
Wash your feet every day in warm water. Dont soak your feet. Dry your feet completely and apply lotion to the top and bottombut not between your toes, which could lead to infection.
Never go barefoot. Always wear shoes and socks or slippers, even inside, to avoid injury. Check that there arent any pebbles or other objects inside your shoes and that the lining is smooth.
Wear shoes that fit well. For the best fit, try on new shoes at the end of the day when your feet tend to be largest. Break in your new shoes slowlywear them for an hour or two a day at first until theyre completely comfortable. Always wear socks with your shoes.
Trim your toenails straight across and gently smooth any sharp edges with a nail file. Have your foot doctor trim your toenails if you cant see or reach your feet.
Dont remove corns or calluses yourself, and especially dont use over-the-counter products to remove themthey could burn your skin.
Get your feet checked at every health care visit. Also, visit your foot doctor every year for a complete exam, which will include checking for feeling and blood flow in your feet.
Be sure to ask your doctor what else you can do to keep your feet healthy.
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Toe Infection Home Treatment
For an ingrown toenail, try soaking your foot in warm, soapy water or apple cider vinegar.
You can treat athletes foot with antifungal sprays or creams available at your pharmacy. You can also check with a pharmacist about getting special padded socks that reduce the amount of moisture on your feet.
Toenail fungus can be treated with a variety of home remedies, including over-the-counter ointments and natural oils.
High Blood Sugar Or Diabetes
Diabetes is the root cause of many wounds that wont heal because it directly damages the bodys natural healing process.
If you have healthy, balanced blood sugar, any wound on your body triggers a natural response of blood flow, clotting, and scabbing. This process protects your underlying tissues from bacteria and fights infection. Your nearby blood vessels also jump into action to deliver fresh oxygen and nutrients to the wound, which gives powerful white blood cells the opportunity to support rapid wound healing.
This natural response becomes far more difficult if you have diabetes or uncontrolled high blood sugar. Extremely high levels of sugar in the blood impair the function of white blood cells, which in turn stunts the bodys ability to ward off bacteria. As a result, diabetics are more prone to sudden infections and wounds that wont heal.
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Prolonged Pressure On The Feet
As mentioned in the previous example, when shoes fit poorly, ulcers can occur. In people without nerve damage, this is usually due to severe atherosclerosis, or a deformity such as a fracture. Elderly patients often have difficulty or find it uncomfortable to examine their feet, ignoring moderate pain from pressure on the feet, which may result in the development of an ulcer.v
Find And Treat Cuts Scrapes And Other Wounds Immediately
If you treat new wounds right away, you can start caring for them before things get bad. So as soon as you find a cut or sore:
Of course, if you dont know you have a wound, you cant treat it quickly. So if you suffer from neuropathy, keep an eye out for new wounds. Check your hands and feet daily, and dont forget to check between your toes.
Wearing white socks can help, too. If you see a red spot or a place where your sock is sticking to your skin, check your foot to see if you have a wound thats new or not healing.
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Toe Or Toenail Injury
If you stub your toe hard, you may drive the nail into the soft tissue surrounding it, which can cause it to become infected.
You can also create problems by trimming your nails too short near the edges, which can allow them to grow down into the fleshy part of your toe.
If you cut your nails so closely that you create a raw spot, this wound can also become infected.
A Take Away All Pressure
If its possible, remove all pressure to ensure the blister roof remains intact and allow it to heal in its own time. For example, a blood blister on top of your toe would benefit from simply wearing open-toed sandals. Similarly, a blister at the back of your heel would get relief from wearing open-backed scuffs. However, if your blister is under your foot, or you simply must wear enclosed shoes, its impossible to negate all pressure.
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Why Wont Cuts On My Feet Heal
Cuts on your feet can be problematic and hurt with each step you take. When youre young and able-bodied, these cuts and sores usually heal relatively quickly. However, when you get older, you may notice that those same wounds dont heal very fast, and some of them seem to linger for a long time. So why wont those cuts heal? We explain why cuts on your feet dont heal quickly or at all on this blog.
You Let The Wound Dry Out
One of the benefits of Hydro Seal is that it prevents scabbing by sealing the wound, explains Cettina.
“A white bubble forms as Hydro Seal absorbs moisture, showing its working and maintaining the optimal environment for your healing wound,” she says. “After several days, the Hydro Seal bandage will begin to fall off on its own, and by that point, the wound should be well on its way to being healed.
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Get Your Blood Sugar Under Control
Given the proven correlation between diabetes and wounds that wont heal, its essential that you keep your blood sugar under control. Working with your doctor to treat your diabetes with diet, exercise, and medication adjustments can have a huge influence on the efficiency of your bodys natural wound-healing process and immune system.
If you can optimize the activity of red blood cells, white blood cells, and your overall circulatory system, youll begin to improve your bodys wound-healing response and protect yourself from non-healing diabetic wounds.
Essential Tips For Foot Wound Care
No matter how careful you try to be as you go through life, minor cuts, scrapes, bruises and sometimes even more serious wounds do happen. When the injury occurs on your feet, heels or ankles, it can be especially painful and hard to heal. Thats why proper care and treatment for a foot wound from the very moment it occurs is very important to ensure proper healing.
As a podiatrist with Westchester Health, Ive noticed over the years that many people lack a good working knowledge of how to care for wounds that need immediate attention but are not serious enough to warrant a trip to the emergency room. To help rectify that, Ive put together some guidelines that explain what to do in case you do sustain an injury to the foot, ankle or lower leg.
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What Do You Do With A Blood Blister On Your Foot
If you miss the blister prevention boat and end up with a blood blister, follow the normal blister treatment sequence to get rid of that foot blisters. But now, preventing infection really is your priority! As a result, consider the options below, depending on your blister location, the environment youre in and what gear you have access to.
How To Treat A Hole/cut In My Big Toe
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Its Been Longer Than Four Weeks
If wounds dont heal within a month, they are considered chronic wounds. While its possible for chronic wounds to heal on their own, its best to get a doctors help to identify why the wound isnt healing and provide treatment.
Our Wound Healing Center offers advanced treatments for severe and chronic diabetic wounds
What Can Be Done
Adjust the Way You Use Crutches
To treat a broken toe not healing after a long time, you need to first make some changes in the way you deal with your injured toe. Even if you are walking on crutches, you should have your foot touch the floor to allow for some natural movement of the leg. Learn how to use crutches correctly, even if it is not the most comfortable way of handling it. It doesnt matter if you have already started developing Reflex Sympathetic Dystrophy the condition is reversible if you stick to the normal way of using your foot.
Physical Therapy Can Help
Bone atrophy can be cured through physical therapy, a procedure that enables you to regain bone mass. The condition can develop into a severe case and result in fractures. It will also take longer to reverse the condition if it is left to develop.Therefore, it is advisable to simply avoid it completely by making use of your injured toe.
Treat the Infection Immediately
Infections in broken toes can be prevented by avoiding drug use, eating healthy and maintaining hygiene. Chronic illnesses such as HIV can also increase your risk of developing an infection as they lead to lower immunity.
Notes: If you have been doing all these the right way and you still have a broken toe not healing, you should pay a visit to the doctor.
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How Big Are Foot And Toe Ulcers
There are many different sizes of ulcers. They start as small as 1 centimeter wide and can grow to the size of your entire foot if left untreated.
The depth of the ulcer can change, too. Several different classification systems exist to define the depth of an ulcer. The Wagner Diabetic Foot Ulcer Grade Classification System, for example, has six grades:
- Grade 0: Your skin is intact .
- Grade 1: The ulcer is superficial, which means that the skin is broken but the wound is shallow .
- Grade 2: The ulcer is a deep wound.
- Grade 3: Part of the bone in your foot is visible.
- Grade 4: The forefront of your foot has gangrene .
- Grade 5: The entire foot has gangrene.
When To Be Concerned
Most of the time, broken toes dont lead to long-term complications or additional health problems. An untreated broken toe or one that resists healing, however, can cause trouble for you and your health.
One key issue is infection. If the skin of your toe was cut or punctured at the time of the break, you have an increased risk of developing an infection. People with certain underlying medical conditions, like diabetes, rheumatoid arthritis, and other immune system conditions, are also at higher risk of infection.
If you notice any of the following symptoms, schedule an appointment right away as they may indicate a bone infection:
- Toe is red and warm
- Aches and fatigue
- Pain that doesnt get better
Bone infection isnt the only cause for concern when it comes to broken toes. For example, any time you injure your big toe, its important to schedule an evaluation with your provider at Arlington/Mansfield Foot & Ankle Centers to ensure your toe heals properly.
Other reasons to be concerned about a broken toe include:
- Having a medical condition that slows healing
- The pain gets worse instead of better over time
- The bruising and or swelling dont improve
- You have an open wound at the time of the break
- You broke multiple toes
- The skin on the toe changes color to blue or gray
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