Bruise Healing
Posted by WhiteCoat on September 13, 2008
How long does it take for a bruise to heal?
A patient asked me this question yesterday.
So for all of those inquiring minds, I’m now going to forgo a chance at publishing another article in a prestigious journal so that you, dear readers, can officially say that a bruise takes “this long” to heal.
Pictured is a sparring injury that I suffered during a martial arts competition. I got nailed in the shoulder by a kick, although – I’m not sure how it got the angular bruise. My opponent was like Drago. He just kept coming at me. I had another good bruise on my leg where I kept kicking him and he didn’t flinch. He just kept yelling. Besides the bruise, one of the things that is embedded into my memory is the picture of this guy’s face yelling with every kick and his red mouth guard obscuring his teeth with every yell.
Anyway, like the true scientist that I am, I took pictures of my rippling shoulder muscle almost every day over a month to get a progression of the bruise as it healed.
You saw it here first.
Teresa said
OK, so it isn’t healed at day 24. We STILL don’t know how long it took, your assertions to the contrary.
And I’m interested, I truly am.
I got bit by some bug in July and got a big very dark reddish-purple splotch with no swelling at all. And the bite was at the edge, not at the center, of the splotch. Looked kinda like Moscow in Russia. Anyway, it’s been 2 months and I still have a slightly red Russia with a darker red Moscow on my leg.
Even worse, I got bit by a tick in June. The bite is still purple and still itches from time to time. Shouldn’t that thing be gone by now? How many months does it take for a tick bite to heal?
Hmm, I think I just figured something out. My bruises don’t take this long to heal. There must be something different about insect bites. I guess I thought it was the same process, that the blood had to be broken down and absorbed back into the body. Maybe I’m wrong.
Maybe I should have titled the post something along the “timeline” of bruise healing rather than actually making a statement that all bruises heal in 24 +/- days. I’ll put this one at the 28 day mark for entire clearing, but this was a deep bruise.
Superficial bruising will generally take less time to heal. Areas with less blood flow will take longer and areas with more blood flow will take less time.
Your bug bite thing defies my knowledge.
rlbates said
Nice!
Davey said
So, what does the other guy look like?
I got a few good shots in, but he won that sparring match.
crankylitprof said
That’s an impressive, rippling, manly-man shoulder. Truly.
Teresa — FWIW, I have a bug bite on the outside, lower part of my calf that is six weeks old and still a dome-sized purple blotch. I have really super-fair Scots skin tone, so I attribute it to that.
Chrys said
That started out as some nasty bruise. Fireguy is always coming home with them. He’s taking Ninjitsu. He keeps threatening me he’s going to tell his doctor he’s an abused husband. They tried getting me to join the class. They wanted to pair me with the only other female participant. She is the size of my Fireguy! I’m 5′2. I could just see the glint in their eyes, they’d all stop working out to watch that, a gorilla, crush a bug.
ERP said
Yeoch. Did you win the match against the rapid guy?
Teresa said
Thanks for the comments, Dr. Whitecoat. By the way, I am very impressed with the day-to-day sameness of the pictures in terms of frame and distance. You did a great job, however you did that, to keep the perspective and frame similar in each shot.
Oh, and I must say that I am bitterly, bitterly disappointed in you, Dr. Whitecoat, that you didn’t include a point on the pain scale for each day’s report. Bitterly. First day looks like at least a 10 to me.
OK, seriously, maybe not a 10, but it looks very painful.
Crankylitprof, thanks for the data point. I do have very fair skin. At least I don’t feel like such a freak knowing you have a similar thing going on.
MM said
I don’t want to get too graphic, but I once was in a head-on car collision where most my injuries came from the seat belt: cut on the neck, loosened front teeth and a left breast and right hip that had as much technicolor as your shoulder. If I remember correctly, my PCP prescribed something to help with the healing of the bruises. I have no idea what it was, but I am sure you do…
Anyway, I know that pain.
William said
>> I’m not sure how it got the angular bruise.
Gravity?
shadowfax said
What style of martial arts?
Carol said
I have a round bruise about 1.5 inches across on the inside of my right elbow from a blood draw on June 10. It’s still dark green and purple… but the needle didn’t hurt at all so I’m pretty much OK with the mottling!!
Picky said
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Picky said
DEAR MR. WHITECOAT! HOPE YOU ARE FINE AND DOING WELL! I NEED YOUR HELP! PLEASE EMAIL ME POKIDA@LIVE.COM AND LET ME KNOW YOUR CONTACT INFO. ITS URGENT!Picky said
DEAR MR. WHITECOAT! HOPE YOU ARE FINE AND DOING WELL! I NEED YOUR HELP! PLEASE EMAIL ME POKIDA@LIVE.COM AND LET ME KNOW YOUR CONTACT INFO. ITS URGENT!
Jo said
Hi, I’d like to use your bruisning figure as an example in a research proposal. If it is OK, drop me a line at my email and let me know how you’d prefer it to be referenced .