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What Causes A Lump Around A Syringe Insertion Site?
Yesterday I was giving blood and the nurse punctured the wall of my vein, causing swelling and dislocation in my arm. The needle was withdrawn and an ice pack applied. I continued applying ice for the rest of the day. Now, 36 hours later, a hard bruise has formed in that location, and the area is very tender. Should I be concerned about the hard lump under my skin. Should I apply heat at this point?
Fri, 12 Jan 2018
Hi.
Thank you for reaching out to Health Care Magic.
There are several stages for a wound to heal when it is formed. Here are the stages briefly.
1. When an injury starts, the neutrophils and a few other white blood cells flock to the area and start repair. This causes swelling of the area. This also makes the blood vessels leaky causing repair to be easier
2. There is redness, itching, and swelling as some toxins are released. These toxins cause a few of the symptoms you have mentioned.
3. With time, the area fibroses as the cells start to clear away debris and the dead cells. This is again done by the neutrophils and the macrophages. Eventually, the fibrous tissue is all that is left and the area may become hard like you had mentioned.
Using heat can be useful to promote blood flow and to clear the debris. Personally, I find icing the area and then heating the area to be even more useful.
I hope this helps. Please reach out to me if you have any other questions.
Dr Vignan
Thank you for reaching out to Health Care Magic.
There are several stages for a wound to heal when it is formed. Here are the stages briefly.
1. When an injury starts, the neutrophils and a few other white blood cells flock to the area and start repair. This causes swelling of the area. This also makes the blood vessels leaky causing repair to be easier
2. There is redness, itching, and swelling as some toxins are released. These toxins cause a few of the symptoms you have mentioned.
3. With time, the area fibroses as the cells start to clear away debris and the dead cells. This is again done by the neutrophils and the macrophages. Eventually, the fibrous tissue is all that is left and the area may become hard like you had mentioned.
Using heat can be useful to promote blood flow and to clear the debris. Personally, I find icing the area and then heating the area to be even more useful.
I hope this helps. Please reach out to me if you have any other questions.
Dr Vignan
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