# Really Deep Bruises



## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

scenario... mountain ride, trying to do a save from an endo, got launched forward onto my handlebars, didnt' get clipped out, handle bar turns and pins thigh to top tube, me and and the bike go ass first into some bushes with the bike on top of me. Once I got untangled, ( took a while!) I thought, " oh I'm going to have some sort of horrible charley horse here..." But I never really got sore, just a little bruise.

Then about 3 days later I went in for my massage, she did a little work on that thigh but not much. After the massage, it's like I had a delayed reaction and the whole quad went into spasm... it was like it was trying to twist my leg out of my hip!! I called her, she talked about delayed reactions and suggested ice and an epsom salt soak which helped a lot.

A week and a half later, just a little bruising shows, but the whole quad area is still a little inflamed. I did a six mile ride on Friday, and a 25 miler on Sat with no problems. Mainly it just hurts when I try to sleep on that side, for everything else I'm fine. But not much shows on the surface... it was suggested to me that when it does show, it's really going to be a mother of one... Anyone ever have something like this happen?

formica


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## mtbmom (Jun 3, 2004)

Sounds like the massage didn't cause a delayed reaction, but perhaps caused some ne bleeding to start in your injury. Sounds like you're healing just fine now.

I got the biggest bruise ever on my butt. Hurt immediately, but was so stiff the next day and of course sitting was more uncomfortable than anything. The thing was black and bigger than a grapefruit.


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## FreeRangeChicken (Jan 13, 2004)

Bursitis maybe?

You may have inflamed the bursa tissue underneath the area where you incurred the bruise. The massage may have further aggrevated the bursa tissue.

[edit] 
I've had run-ins with bursitis. It's an odd condition because it doesn't hurt when I exercise.
[/edit]


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## porterjack (May 10, 2004)

you're lucky. i had a similar incident with the handlebar end, and immediately swelled up and ended up getting the biggest bruise i've ever seen. it looked similar to that nasty one "steve" posted on another thread. yuck  i still have a nice circular shape from where the handlebar end hit my thigh. beautiful


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## verslowrdr (Mar 22, 2004)

I once hooked the top tube/handlebar somehow on an endo, whipped the bike right up over the top of me, and cracked the mtn rack right between my shoulder blades.  

But the worst bruise I ever had was from falling on solid glare ice off a dog sled. I gimped on the hip for days. Warm showers, ibuprofin, gentle warmups, stretching, and just plain ol' waiting it out seemed to do the trick.... but bad bruises seem to hurt more than wounds requiring stitches for whatever reason.


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## Impy (Jan 6, 2004)

verslowrdr said:


> I once hooked the top tube/handlebar somehow on an endo, whipped the bike right up over the top of me, and cracked the mtn rack right between my shoulder blades.
> 
> :


ouch ouch!!


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## Nitrox_Bunny (Jul 13, 2004)

I just about killed myself a few days ago. I was on a singletrack approaching a small log. I was going to bunnyhop over it but changed my mind when I was about 8 feet away. I slowed down a great deal, but once again, changed my mind -- now about 4 feet away. Needless to say, I didn't have enough speed behind me to get both tires over the log, and ended up with the log between my front and back tires.
To make matters worse, my front tire got stuck in a rut and I didn't have time to unclip. I started to do an endo, but met with a rather large tree which reversed my direction. Well, it wasn't exactly a reverse in direction, it was more like sideways and into another tree. Still not unclipped, and down I went. My left leg got twisted up under my bike and I smacked my chin into a branch.
When I finally stood up I realized I had been sitting in a patch of poison ivy. My vision started to fade, my hearing went and I suddenly felt sick to my stomach -- yes, you guessed it, I had a concussion.
It's been 3 days and I'm still counting the huge bruised covering my left leg, and the scratches on my face and left arm. I look like I came from a war zone, but I've been told it looks tough -- good or bad I'm not sure. At least I have one thing to be thankful for. I DIDN'T GET POISON IVY!!!


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

Tips for next time:

I just got off the phone with a friend of mine who is a collegiate atheletic trainer.

when you bang yourself up like this...NO HEAT. I got reamed for the epsom salt soak ( even tho the quad was is total spasm and I couldn't walk) . Ice packs. What you want to do is ICE...preferably cubes in a baggie right on the skin, less likely to burn than gel packs. Also a compression wrap if possible. Evidiently I did everything wrong and I got the lecture about potential for calcification in the muscles blah blah blah...I'm going to see her for an assesment in a bit and see what she says. 

formica


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## oldbroad (Mar 19, 2004)

formica said:


> calcification in the muscles
> formica


That doesn't sound good. What exactly happens when you get calcification in the muscles? And how can bruising cause that?

Nitrox_Bunny -  ouch! Glad you're ok.


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

just got back from my visit with my trainer friend...

with these deep bruises you get a lot of fluid build up even if the bruise never shows on the surface. If you don't take care of them, the fluid never really drain outs properly and some of it can calcify at a microscopic level within tissue. (or something like that) She does like to scare me! But she knows what's she's talking about...
She did a test for flexability, which was OK, a good sign. My precription is a compression bandage on the whole thigh which will help drainage, and ice massage 4x a day, No stress on the muscle which means only flat bike paths, no climbing etc for a week.   Then she'll reevaluate how much strenth I've lost. The lecture is, if I do this now it will heal a LOT faster/better than if I blow it off.  

formica

I'll see what else I can find out about deep bruising, I'll ask her for a link or something. She's been a collegiate trainer for years, none of this 24 hour certification stuff. I'll post it when I get it.


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## Legbacon (Jan 20, 2004)

*Deep bruise*

Pardon me for posting on the Women's forum but I had something similar. I was riding down a very steep slope of slickrock which leveled off abrubtly at the bottom. I didn't get my weight forward quick enough and went over backwards. I landed on my left cheek and the pain was intense (for a man). I had no stength in my left leg and had to hobble up the climbs back to the trail head and then drive back to the hostel which was very painfull. I checked in the mirror and there was nothing showing yet. I took it easy for a couple of days and was then able to ride again with some discomfort although driving and sitting were worse. I drive 24 hrs home and check the mirror again and was shocked to see a 14 x 5" bruise on my left cheek from just above my tailbone downward. This was 3 years ago, the tissue at to top of the cheek still hurts and goes part numb if I sit wrong for a long period. I wish I had taken a picture.


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

if you can wade through the medical jargon, here's an article specifically about deep contusions... treatment etc, 
Sports Physician Article on contusions

myositis ossificans is the process where bone tissue forms in skeletal tissue after an injury.

I know, tmi....


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## sunnyracegirl (Apr 11, 2004)

*arnica oil for bruising*

I have found arnica oil rubbed directly onto a bruised area helps speed the healing. You can find it at good health food stores. As with any oil, make sure it's in a dark (not clear) bottle.

Scar tissue as I understand it (please correct any fallacies):

Scar tissue can be microscopic (like after a shoulder sprain) or large, depending on the trauma. A lump in a severely bruised area that remains weeks or months after the accident may be scar tissue, possibly the effects of calcification after severe tissue trauma.

The scar tissue is stiff, and does not flex like muscle; therefore any scar tissue will limit your range of motion and increase the likelihood of re-injury.

Although it's quite painful at first, the existing scar tissue can be rubbed (frictioned) out and broken up, and eventually be reabsorbed into the body. A good physical therapist can help with this.

I don't know if there's any "statute of limitations" on treating scar tissue - whether you need to treat it immediately, or whether you can treat it a year down the road.

Formica, is this correct? I'm trying to understand this myself.
Speedy recovery.


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## formica (Jul 4, 2004)

yes arnica is good.

As for breaking up scar tissue, I'm not qualified to answer that other than my own experiences. I am not a medical professional. I've been in a couple of rear end type car accidents, and my massage therapists talk about doing this to shallow musculature such as scapula and neck.

But, at the same time, the kind of scar tissues that you develop on a smaller muscle may be different or easier to work with than the kind that develops deep down, in a large muscle, close to the bone.

The Physician and Sports Medicine is an excellent medical journal, maybe a good search in their archives will bring up some information. My practicitioner **implied** that the calicfication situation is a) very deep injuries and b) not reversible.

formica


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