 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Lip Laceration
Related Product
If you are interested in this story, you may also be interested in these parent videos.This Week's Top Stories
Most Popular Stories
| Wednesday, December 5th, 2007 | CWK Producer | CWK Producer |
“He fell down and hurt his lip and his tooth, so we brought him in to see if he needed any stitches on his lip.”
– Luis’ mom
A big part of growing up involves a lot of falling down. Often that means broken bones, knocked-out teeth and stitches. Mouth injuries, in particular, can look bad.
Four-year-old Luis just came from the dentist where they had to pull one of his front teeth.
“He fell down and hurt his lip and his tooth, so we brought him in to see if he needed any stitches on his lip,” says Luis’ mom.
“Of course, we want our children to have their teeth, but when they have a mouth injury and a tooth is loose, we always pull the tooth if it might be a problem – where it might fall out or a child might choke on it -- instead of trying to save it, preserve it and splint it like we would with an adult tooth,” says David Goo, M.D., Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta.
“Does it hurt?” asks the nurse.
“Yeah,” says Luis.
When Luis fell down he landed on his face and cut his lip. Will he need stitches to repair the cut lip?
“The outer part of the lip where the change in color occurs is called the vermillion border. That’s a very special area. If there’s a cut in the vermillion border, we have to sew that up and be very careful with it, because it’s a very visible area and if there’s a scar there, because of the differentiation in colors, we want to make sure that scar is well healed so that later on there’s not a bad cosmetic outcome,” says Goo.
Luis won’t need stitches because his cut is just below the edge of his lip. That’s just as well, the doctor says, because stitches in or near the mouth are prone to infection. Instead, Luis’s cut will heal on its own and the doctor advises a diet of soft foods such as applesauce and mashed potatoes, and plenty of liquids.
“And after they eat, we just ask that they rinse their mouth out with either a syringe or a bulb just to get the food particles out of it,” says Goo.
“If it starts to get bigger, if he has a fever or if it just looks really bad to you, please come back or call the doctor,” says the nurse.
What We Need To Know
- Stitches are loops of string that doctors use to join the edges of a cut on your skin. It's a lot like sewing fabric together. But after a few days or a week, the skin heals and the stitches come out. (Nemours Foundation)
- Stitches are primarily used if the cut is more than a quarter-inch deep, if a cut is on the face, or if an injury reaches the bone. Stitches help hold the wound together so it can heal properly. (National Institutes of Health, NIH)
- Your doctor will tell you how to care for stitches. It's important to follow the directions carefully. Different kinds of stitches -- sutures, glue and butterflies -- need different kinds of care. (Nemours Foundation)
- The doctor probably will tell you to keep your cut dry for at least one to two days. Most stitches should not get wet. Some cuts with stitches need to be covered with an antibiotic ointment and a bandage to prevent infection. (Nemours Foundation)
- It's important that you don't tug or pull on the stitches, even if they get itchy. And don't ever try to take the stitches out by yourself. (Nemours Foundation)
- The doctor will tell you how to care for your skin after the stitches have been removed. You may be told to avoid getting direct sun on the area for a while. The doctor also might give you a cream for your skin to make the scar heal. (Nemours Foundation)
Resources
- Children’s Healthcare of Atlanta
- National Institutes of Health (NIH)
- Nemours Foundation
