Deep thigh contusion is very common with athletes, as it is generally caused by a sharp impact from a muscle that is crushed against the thigh bone. Contusions on thighs are one of the hardest one to get rid of, and may develop into permanent scars if not properly treated. Contusions appear when a blow or trauma causes the blood vessels beneath your skin to break and the blood to leak into the surrounding tissues, while the skin itself is not ruptured. Minor contusions on any body parts including thighs are going to fade by itself, but you can perform some treatments to speed up deeper thigh contusions recovery.

Major symptoms of deep thigh contusions

Deep contusions are always accompanied by pain and swelling caused by trauma on the affected area. There are some effects that may occur from deep thigh contusions, such as:

• Twinges of pain during activities.
• Inability to rest or straight the leg and bend the knee. Doing so will result in excruciating pain and may contribute to increased swelling.
• Walking inhibition or inability to walk without the aid of crutches.
• Skin discoloration around the affected area. The swollen are might be bluish, purplish, or brownish, depending on the affected blood vessels and the amount of blood seepage.

How to get rid of a deep thigh contusion

Seeing the above possible risks, it is important to speed up deep thigh contusions by performing proper treatments. The contusions can be either intramuscular—a tearing of the muscle within sheath surrounding it that will take days or weeks to recover, or intermuscular—a tearing of the muscle and part of the sheath surrounding it. Despite how bad deep thigh contusions may be, some treatments can be employed to help you getting rid of the blue-black patches faster.

• Use the basic principle of RICE to treat a deep thigh contusion. These are beneficial treatments you can do at home to help healing the affected skin area.
  • REST, is the first treatment, which involves resting and giving the affected thigh a break for certain period of time. Excessive movements or pressure on the wounded thigh might worsen the contusion, as it causes an accumulation of blood around the ruptured blood vessels. Although you can still walk with deep contusions on thigh, it is better to use crutches to support it, so that excessive pressure can be alleviated from the wound site.
  • ICE, is as important and can improve swelling and resulted pain. You can either apply an ice pack or frozen vegetables over the contusions, or give a deep ice massage to help bringing down the swelling and alleviate the pain. To give the massage, freeze water in Styrofoam or thick paper cup and hold the bottom of the cup to rub the ice over the painful area for 15 to 20 minutes. Do this several times, giving a 5 or 10 minute interval between each session.
  • COMPRESSION, is the third important treatment for deep thigh contusion. Deep ice massage or ice wrapped with a towel and rolled over the contusions help reducing the inflammation that is important for contusion elimination.
  • ELEVATION, is essential for contusion treatment. When lying down, put your affected thigh on a pillow, so that it is elevated above the heart. This is important to inhibit blood accumulation on the wound site, so that the contusions can be minimized.
• Heat can be applied over the contusions within 48 hour post injury. Warm compress will promote proper circulation that help improve the pain and swelling on the affected thigh.
• Find a therapist to perform sport massage techniques after the acute period passed. This will increase blood circulation and promote faster skin cell regeneration, so that discoloration eventually subsides.
• As soon as the swelling subsides, you can do some stretches to prevent stiff knee. Stretch training and light weight training are also recommended to be done in gradual progress.
• To reduce the pain, you are advised to take medications containing ibuprofen or acetaminophen. However, pay attention closely to the contained substances and avoid taking these medications if you are consuming blood-thinning and other prescribed medications.

Preventing a deep thigh contusion