Why is skin around my wound yellow?

A wound is a very common thing in life. It can be a tiny, shallow cuts to a serious, painful burn. A wound should be treated as quick as possible to avoid further infection. Treatment vary according to the degree of the injury, the depth of the wound, and the causes of the wound. A tiny, shallow cuts can obviously be self-handled, while more serious wound might need medical expert care. Proper kind and dose of antibiotics can be taken to help curing the injury from the inside. A wound might need different treatment from another. Hence, knowing the cause of the wound may help deciding the treatment.

What are types of wound and what causes them?

A wound will occur when you get trauma on your skin. Wounds can cut or bruise only the outer part of your skin—the epidermis, or the inner part—sometimes your flesh. Some types of wound include:

1. Cuts slice the skin and open it. Cuts are mostly followed by bleeding. When having slight cut, people often do not realize they are bleeding because it doesn’t hurt. However, deeper cuts may be dangerous, as they induce serious pain and bleeding, and are on the risk of infection. Cuts have to be immediately handled by rinsing the wound with disinfectant, applying some iodine, and covering with sterilized bandage. Major cuts might need stitches, and it requires to be done by trusted expert.
2. Scrapes might be less harmful than cuts. However, they are usually more painful, as the strikes might tear nerve tissues beneath your skin. Scrapes should be instantly cleaned and disinfect. People rarely cover scraped wound. This will be fine as long as you keep them clean.
3. Punctures are categorized as major wounds, as they usually cause much bleeding and develop the risk of tetanus. They should be sterilized and handled by professionals.
4. Burns are a common type of wound. This type of wound are the result of expose to fire and heat. Burns span from the light one—your wound is red, swollen, and painful to the major one—your wound is black and cause less pain, because your nerve system beneath the skin is actually damaged.
5. Animal bites. These wounds are also serious. Some animals can cause rabies which brings death. Sterilization and proper vaccine are needed to treat the wound.

During the healing process, you might find that your wound might transform its color and shape. The skin surrounding the wound is also affected. Some people get curious when open the bandage and find their skin around the wound turn yellow.

Why is skin around my wound yellow?

Every type of wound has the risk of getting infected. Hence, you have to pay attention to your wound healing process to avoid this. When your skin around the wound is turning yellow, you are experiencing bruising. Bruising is very common in wound healing, as it signs that our body is fighting the wound bacteria. The yellowish color beneath your skin is your white blood cells that fight the strange things come within the wound. This is a normal process—not an infection, as long as:

1. It doesn’t intensify the stingy and pain sensation.
2. It doesn’t turn red or get burnt.
3. It doesn’t cause a fever.
4. It is not filled with fluid and pus.

If this happens along with intensified pain and fever, you might get an infection. You will need proper medical care to handle it, avoiding further infection that might threaten your health. Infection can be avoided through proper wound care.

How do I handle wounds to avoid infection?

When handling a wound, cleanliness and hygiene are the most important things. Other important things to consider are:

1. Get your wound sterilized right after bleeding. Applying alcohol is advised to get rid of harmful bacteria that can enter through your opened skin.
2. Keep your wound clean. When use bandage, make sure you replace it after bath. Do not expose your wound to water.
3. When your wound contain fluid and pus, seek for medical help and prescription to help healing the wound from the inside.