She sliced her finger two days ago on a sharp edge of a broken mirror. Her mother applied direct pressure for about ten - fifteen minutes and the bleeding slowed, finally. We have put on several band-aids (Sesame Street, in case you’re wondering), and a couple of times, the last just now, it has started bleeding again. What exactly does one due to stop a small cut from bleeding on a one-year-old?
Thanks.
Try Krazy Glue…it sounds bizzare, but it works.
Has it stopped yet?
I seriously hope its nothing serious.
Blod doesn’t clot = bad.
Check with a doctor if it doesn’t stop otay?
Take her to a doctor.
Yeah a doctor sounds like the way to go. The pediatrician may decide that suturing is indicated, and possibly even reattachment of a severed nerve (kaylasmom has a totally insensate finger due to a cut that the medicos felt did not warrant nerve reattachment). But, absent a finding of a severed nerve, the doctor may just close the laceration with a butterfly bandage, and (this is the important part) immobilize the finger with a splint of some type. As long as your little one can wiggle the finger, she’ll be able to disturb the laceration and interrupt the healing.
In the event that the doctor decides to suture, be prepared for one of the most heart-rending experiences of your parental career as the anesthetic is injected. Trust me on this. :shudder:
[sub]We really need a shudder smilie.[/sub]
We’ve had plenty of experiences with doctors and our kids; too many, in fact. I guess on one hand I want to avoud the docs as long as possible, but not if they really need it.
We’ll see what happens today. Thanks for the repsonses.
What? You want to avoid taking her to the doctor?
kaylasdad99 mentions butterfly bandage. I am pretty sure I have heard these called butterfly sutures. I have some of these in the first aid kit at home and they are a really good idea.
Basicly a thin sticky plaster shapped like an hourglass. The two ends of are sticky, but not the thin middle. Take two sutures and place the sticky end of one on the left of the cut and another on the other side. Pull the sutures together to close the wound and stick down on the other side.
I am pleased to add that I have never yet had to use them.
Taking her in to see a doctor seems to be overreacting. Both our current and past HMOs had a number where you could call to talk to a nurse to find out if you should come in, or if it will just take care of itself, or what.
G. Cornelius, I’ve seen two types of items that carry the name butterfly. The one you describe, with the vaguely lepidopteric shape, and also a type that is simply a strip, approximately 5mm wide, and designed to be cut to whatever length is considered necessary. This type has no plastic backing, and I’ve only seen it available at the doctor’s office.
ZenBeam, I love that sig. Can I have it when you’re done?
:eek:
You can have my sig when you pry it from my cold, dead fingers. 
I can only assume that more often then not they told you that it would be okay, don’t worry about it (unless it something that ignoring could cause hospital bills). When I switched to my new insurance I was given a whole big book of what to do if…shoulder hurts, nose runs, ears ringing and every other ailment all the way down to “penis pain/stiffness” (to which a friend remarked "I didn’t know penis stiffness was really a problem). Anyways I later figured out that they’re doing whatever they can to keep you from going to the doctor/needing medicine etc etc etc…
Tell your friend it can be. A prolonged erection that won’t go down (known as priapism) is a medical emergency, requiring prompt treatment by a urologist. Left untreated, priapism may cause damage to the penile tissues, which often results in subsequent impotence.
I can’t believe you guys are mtalking about prolonged erections in a thread about my daughter’s cut finger! I’m embarassed for you!
And no, I’m trying to avoid taking her to a doctor, Guinastasia, I want to avoid over-reacting. Like I said before, we have plenty of experience with doctor’s hospitals and ERs. Well, I guess I kind of do want to avoid them, but not in the sense i think you mean.
Anyway, she’s fine now, I think. No more worries!
OK, that should be “I’m not trying to avoid taking her to the doctor”…
Ahem.
Any surgical repair of a laceration should be performed within 12 hours of the initial injury, so you’ve missed that window. What could a doctor do at this point? Assess for infection, retained foreign body, or penetration into the tendon, nerve or joint capsule.
If one is having trouble controlling bleeding over two days after an injury in an infant or child, there is really no substitute for an evaluation by a professional.
QtM, MD
Slight hijack here…I seem to remember reading somewhere that cyanoacrylates like Krazy Glue were originally developed for use by battlefield medics. Used in place of stitches in order to speed up the process of moving casualties from the front lines to the recovery hospitals.
Oh, okay. Sorry, I guess I misunderstood and thought you had something against doctors.
:o
I LOVE using Krazy Glue for cuts. It’s waterproof, it doesn’t let the cut get all nasty underneath, and it keeps the cut together great. Of course, I’ve used this AFTER the bleeding has stopped.