Condition Lookup

Contusions and Lacerations

Specialty: Emergency and Urgent Care

Symptoms:
pain; swelling; discoloration or bruising; open wound; bleeding

Root Cause:
Blunt or sharp trauma causing damage to the skin, underlying tissue, and blood vessels.

How it's Diagnosed: videos
Physical examination, wound assessment, and imaging if deeper structures are suspected to be involved.

Treatment:
Cleaning and closing the wound (stitches, staples, or adhesive strips), bandaging, and monitoring for infection.

Medications:
Antibiotics (topical or systemic for infection prevention), tetanus prophylaxis if necessary, pain relievers (acetaminophen or NSAIDs).

Prevalence: How common the health condition is within a specific population.
Very common; affects people of all ages, often due to accidents or sports injuries.

Risk Factors: Factors or behaviors that increase the likelihood of developing the condition.
Participation in contact sports, workplace hazards, and high-risk activities.

Prognosis: The expected outcome or course of the condition over time.
Generally excellent with proper wound care; healing time depends on severity.

Complications: Additional problems or conditions that may arise as a result of the original condition.
Infection, scarring, delayed healing, and damage to underlying structures.

Tendon injuries (e.g., Achilles rupture)

Specialty: Emergency and Urgent Care

Category: Trauma and Injuries

Sub-category: Soft Tissue Injuries

Symptoms:
sudden sharp pain in the back of the lower leg; difficulty walking; swelling near the heel; visible gap in the tendon; weakness in pushing off during walking or running

Root Cause:
Complete or partial tear of the tendon due to excessive stress, sudden force, or degeneration.

How it's Diagnosed: videos
Physical examination (e.g., Thompson test), MRI, or ultrasound to confirm the extent of the injury.

Treatment:
Conservative management with casting or bracing, surgical repair in active individuals, followed by physical therapy.

Medications:
NSAIDs (e.g., ibuprofen , celecoxib ) to control pain and inflammation.

Prevalence: How common the health condition is within a specific population.
More common in males aged 30–50; frequently occurs in recreational athletes.

Risk Factors: Factors or behaviors that increase the likelihood of developing the condition.
Sports involving jumping or sudden acceleration, poor conditioning, use of fluoroquinolone antibiotics, steroid injections.

Prognosis: The expected outcome or course of the condition over time.
Good with proper treatment; surgery has a lower risk of re-rupture compared to conservative methods.

Complications: Additional problems or conditions that may arise as a result of the original condition.
Re-rupture, stiffness, chronic weakness, deep vein thrombosis (DVT).

Deep Lacerations

Specialty: Emergency and Urgent Care

Category: Trauma and Injuries

Sub-category: Soft Tissue Injuries

Symptoms:
severe bleeding; visible separation of skin and underlying tissue; pain at the injury site; swelling; impaired function of the affected area

Root Cause:
Damage to skin, muscles, blood vessels, and potentially nerves or tendons, often caused by sharp objects or trauma.

How it's Diagnosed: videos
Visual examination, assessment of depth and extent of the wound, evaluation for nerve, vessel, or tendon injury.

Treatment:
Wound cleaning, suturing or surgical repair, pressure application to control bleeding, and wound dressing.

Medications:
Antibiotics (e.g., amoxicillin-clavulanate) to prevent infection; tetanus prophylaxis; local anesthesia for wound repair; analgesics for pain relief.

Prevalence: How common the health condition is within a specific population.
Common in trauma cases, accounting for a significant portion of emergency department visits.

Risk Factors: Factors or behaviors that increase the likelihood of developing the condition.
Handling sharp tools or machinery, accidental falls, workplace or sports injuries.

Prognosis: The expected outcome or course of the condition over time.
Excellent with timely and appropriate wound care; delayed treatment increases risk of infection or poor wound healing.

Complications: Additional problems or conditions that may arise as a result of the original condition.
Infection, scarring, nerve or tendon damage, chronic pain, impaired function of the affected area.

Severe Contusions

Specialty: Emergency and Urgent Care

Category: Trauma and Injuries

Sub-category: Soft Tissue Injuries

Symptoms:
pain and tenderness at the site; swelling; skin discoloration (bruising); stiffness; reduced range of motion in affected area; lump or hematoma formation

Root Cause:
Blunt trauma causes capillary damage, leading to bleeding under the skin and within muscles. Severe cases may involve deep tissue or bone bruising.

How it's Diagnosed: videos
Physical examination of the injury, palpation, assessment of range of motion, and imaging (X-ray or MRI) if underlying fractures or hematomas are suspected.

Treatment:
Rest, ice application, compression, elevation (RICE therapy); physical therapy for severe or persistent cases; surgical intervention for hematoma evacuation in rare cases.

Medications:
Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) such as ibuprofen for pain and inflammation; acetaminophen as an alternative for pain management.

Prevalence: How common the health condition is within a specific population.
Common in sports injuries, falls, and minor traumas; severe contusions are less frequent but occur in high-impact injuries.

Risk Factors: Factors or behaviors that increase the likelihood of developing the condition.
Contact sports, motor vehicle accidents, falls, direct trauma, anticoagulant therapy.

Prognosis: The expected outcome or course of the condition over time.
Usually good with conservative treatment; extensive injuries may require longer recovery periods or physical therapy.

Complications: Additional problems or conditions that may arise as a result of the original condition.
Hematoma formation, compartment syndrome in severe cases, calcification of injured tissue (myositis ossificans), chronic pain.