Stitches

Any advice for taking care of scrapes and stitches?

I had a really bad fall on a moped about 2 days ago and I slid right through gravel/rocks. I rushed to the ER and I ended up getting 6 stitches in my elbows. Other than that both my knees are scraped up, one worse than the other. The pain is so antagonizing and I can't walk because it hurts so bad to bend my knees. Water hurts on all wounds but I did manage to wash up the scrapes with antibiotic soap and warmish water. The stitches on the other hand, I could only rinse off. I do take care of all wounds and change my bandages about twice a day, morning and night, and use neosporin+ pain. So my question is, should I keep my knees bent or straight? Covered or uncovered? What should I do about the pain with my stitches? Thanks (:

Public Comments

1. Scrapes on knees can really suck. Take it from me, an ex-BMX racer. Now obviously you need to get around, so it's hard to keep your knee straight all the time or it bent all the time. However I can tell you this: You need to keep it covered until it scabs over to it doesn't get infected and doesn't make a scar. Keep your knee in straight because it'll be much easier for your skin to heal when it's not stretched like when it's bent. As for your pain, pain medicine, they make spray that you can put on your cut and stitches to relieve pain. You can also try this, it's a little far fetched but it may work. Without getting into the science of different nerve endings in and around that area, I can say to try icy hot above the cut. Not too close to get it in the cut though. The counter-irritant properties may actually help relieve the pain. Good luck =)
2. Your knee is a little bit difficult to keep consisently covered due to it being a joint. You could help it a little bit by wrapping it in a tensor bandage, or by putting some gauze on it, and then get knee support. I would however, ask your doctor about the best way, as with knees, it is a little bit more complicated then other areas. As for the stitch site it is important to keep it clean. Overall, I would consider asking the doctor for advice, as wound management can be quite complicated in some cases. Hope that this helps you.