What to do if your breasts are injured

  Women’s breasts are rich in subcutaneous fat and small blood vessels, which are prone to local hematoma, breakage, and even infection after trauma. Therefore, after breast injury, don’t be careless and should be treated promptly.  If there is no epidermal breakage or subcutaneous bleeding after an injury such as an impact to the breast, no special treatment is usually needed, only observation. If the pain is significant, painkillers can be taken to relieve the pain.  If there is subcutaneous bruising or hematoma in the injured breast, as long as the hematoma is not large, a cold compress can be applied because the bleeding will stop when the local blood vessels are constricted by the cold. After three days, hot compresses can be applied to promote the absorption of the bruise or hematoma. If the breast hematoma is large, or if the hematoma is still increasing after cold compresses, you should go to the hospital in a timely manner and have the blood stasis removed from the breast hematoma, and then give pressure bandages to prevent continued bleeding, and take antibiotics to prevent secondary infection.  If there is a break in the skin of the breast, it should be immediately cleared and disinfected, and an adequate amount of antibiotics should be given to prevent infection. If redness, swelling, fever and pain occur at the injured part of the breast, this is a sign of inflammation. In the early stage of inflammation, while giving a large amount of antibiotic treatment, local hot compresses can also be taken to promote the absorption of inflammation. Once the infected area produces throbbing pain and a local fluctuating sensation when touched by hand, it is already the abscess stage of breast infection, indicating that necrosis has occurred in the fat and other tissues in the infected area. At this time, the above treatment methods are hardly effective and breast abscess incision and drainage should be performed.  After a woman’s breast injury, regardless of the severity, she needs to wear a bra of the right size and soft texture to hold her breasts up so that they can rest and facilitate early recovery.  Infections in the breast, especially breast abscesses, may affect lactation in the future. Severe infections may also cause scar adhesions and contractures of local tissues, resulting in local skin depressions and deformations, leading to damage to physical and mental health. Therefore, women should try to keep their breasts free from external injuries, and if they are ever damaged, they should seek early medical attention and timely treatment to prevent sequelae.