How my wounded finger started to heal

A few days back I was dicing the vegetables and me being a self-acclaimed pro-dicer was dicing the vegetables as if the spirit of The Speed Force had descended upon me. And I was doing a good job until my index finger came in the way. Slash! Yes, that's what I did to my finger, and man that was a small but deep cut the knife being a sharp Santoku and that knife was sharp with a capital 'S'. I started to bleed profusely. Several ice-packs later only the blood-flow stopped and I then applied an antiseptic spray to avoid any kind of infection. Also, I had got myself injected with the Tetanus vaccine a few months back due to another cut so I was obviously safe from getting tetanus causing bacteria at least. Once the wound was treated and a bandage was applied over it my finger became back to dicing kind of good and I was ready to have another go at the veggies, ignoring the obvious pain that comes after the injury aftermath.

Be careful while chopping veggies etc

Over the next few days, life went by as usual. I didn't pay much heed to how the wound had shaped up. Then one fine day the bandage came off by itself and I found that a brown-ish hard coating(scab) had covered the area. It is an amazing work of the human body that often goes unnoticed. The wound healed in good time because I had done whatever my mom(who lives in a different city) had told me in order to take care of the wound until it healed.

Taking care of the wound

We must ensure keeping the wound is clean and covered. This can help prevent infections and scarring. For minor wounds like mine, cleaning the wound with antiseptic and water works well. After that, we need to cover the wound with a sterile bandage or other dressing. Avoid scratching the scab. This can interfere with healing and will cause unwanted scars. 

For major wounds, please follow the doctor's instructions on how to care for your injury.

How does the wound heal

Wounds are part and parcel of life. And as I have told and you all obviously know they heal in due course of time.

A fresh wound before blood coagulation

When your skin gets cut or damaged, the broken blood vessels start getting narrow. This narrowing of the blood vessels prevents excessive bleeding and foreign micro-bodies from entering the bloodstream. The coagulation process takes place after this, which means the blood flow begins to slow down and gradually changes to a solid or semi-solid state. This is facilitated by the release of the Thromboplastin enzyme. Clotting or coagulation includes a protein called fibrin. It’s a biological glue that makes a net to hold the platelet plug in place. This holds the edges of the wound together in place and gradually hardens into a protective scab.

Meanwhile, white blood cells called Leukocytes converge at the wound site and engulfs any foreign micro-organism that might have entered the blood. Further other components of the white blood cells like neutrophils, basophils, eosinophils, lymphocytes, monocytes, and macrophages. They engulf any additional germs or any debris. Lymphocytes take care of any escaped foreign-bodies since they treat germs as antigens or foreign protein bodies. Once the wound is clean and stable, the body can begin rebuilding the site. Oxygen-rich red blood cells come to the site to create new tissue. It’s like a construction site, except that the human body makes its own building materials. Production of antibodies is initiated which is protein-based that prevents the germs from infecting.

       

Scab has formed over the wound

In the lower layer of the skin, called the dermis fibroblast, cells start to accumulate and produce new tissues which are vital for the wound to heal. In the epidermis or upper layer of skin, the cells around the wound start multiplying to cover up the wound caused gaps. As healing continues, you may notice that the area itches. After the scab falls off, the area may look stretched, red, and shiny. The scar that forms will be smaller than the original wound. It will be less strong and less flexible than the surrounding skin. Over time, the scar will fade and may disappear completely. And there you are, all healed from the wound.

That's it for now. Take Care. Be Safe. Be Healthy.