Recently we saw a sports injury at an adult field hockey tournament. The player had originally scrapped her big toe while wearing sandals. The initial injury was a scrape, also known as a raspberry or road-rash, which progressed into something much worse (as you can see in the photo). The individual kept walking on the injured skin and used shoes and socks like normal. Since the area was never treated it formed into something worse. This particular section of the foot experiences lots of rubbing, sweating, and compression from many types of shoes and socks. Each time the cut was touched and rubbed against, it prevented new tissue from forming due to consistent re-opening of the wound and lack of blood flow to the area. The brown and white areas of the “cut-turned-blister-turned-septic infection” represent dead tissue and dying skin. The bacterial infection has the potential to enter the blood stream and seriously jeopardize the safety and health of the entire foot, leg, and body. This is a perfect case that shows how the neglect of a simple wound can turn into a complicated, whole body infection.
The individual was sent to the hospital and was encouraged to take anti-biotics, to rest, and to keep the infected area out of footwear and able to breathe and heal.
Don't let something small turn into something catastrophic. If you are worried about the state of your blisters or cuts, contact Heathmark Foot & Ankle today!
Media, Pennsylvania 610-565-3668
Phoenixville, Pennsylvania 610-933-8644