How Do You Treat Soft Tissue Damage in the Face?

Did you know that if you do not go for prompt treatment following a facial injury, it can cause complications like infection or loss of function?

In today’s mechanized world, soft tissue injuries to the face are becoming quite frequent. Doctors often deal with the task of restructuring damaged faces almost daily. Damage to the face could be avulsions from steel, lacerations from glass, or dirt-filled abrasions from the roadbed. These injuries demand careful care and attention. If the doctors do not treat them promptly, it could mean deformity of the face. This can leave the patient with physiological and psychological issues. 

When a patient comes in with other injuries, including facial injuries, the doctors must first attend to the other injuries. The deformity is acceptable in this case as a necessary outcome. They can then institute strategies for reconstruction after recovery. But if the facial injuries are primary, the surgeon will attend to them immediately. Treating facial injuries quickly is advisable as reconstruction efforts will be effective.

Neurovascular Injuries

Neurovascular injuries can be responsible for blood loss and hemorrhaging in your craniofacial complex. Treatments like angiography might be necessary if the injury is in your mouth. You might also have trigeminal nerve damage if you incur facial soft tissue damage. You will need urgent medical attention at the site if this happens.

Lacerations

There is an established treatment plan for lacerations.
 

• The surgeon will institute anesthesia. They will use topical, regional block, or local anesthetics. Most surgeons specializing in this will employ a regional block because the wound’s edges remain intact
   

• The surgeon will have to ensure that they respect anatomic borders and put them into alignment. This is to ensure that no deformity occurs during and after the procedure
   

• The surgeon will ensure the highest levels of cleanliness. They will rinse, clean, and explore the wound. Because of any dead tissue in your wound, they might debride it before closing it
   

• To prevent scarring, your surgeon will repair the lacerations in two layers
  
  
   

Cheek Injuries

Severe cheek injuries can damage the parotid duct. This can cause significant pain and inflammation in the cheek area of your face. Your surgeon will hurry to assess the extent of the damage and the depth of the wound. The surgeon will suture the parotid duct that is affected over a stent to fix this kind of damage.

Contusion

Contusions are a common soft tissue injury usually caused by blunt trauma to your face. You should apply ice packs to the affected area for about 10 to 20 minutes for two to three days. This will significantly reduce inflammation and pain. You can also take anti-inflammatory medication without steroids for relief.

Abrasions

Abrasions are a result of sudden or forceful friction to the face. To avoid tattooing, the doctor will clean the wound of all debris. It is more likely that they will use local anesthesia to keep you comfortable during the cleaning. To help heal your injury, they will apply sterile and antiseptic bandages.

For more on treating soft tissue damage in the face, visit Oral Surgical Associates at our office in Missoula or Hamilton, Montana. You can call (406) 282-8768 to book an appointment today.