If swelling is a natural thing, why do we wear compression socks, elevate our swollen feet, and put them in ice? Doesnt the blood being there allow the body to cure the area?
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When blood initially floods in it is a good thing. Think of it like a natural way to call in soldiers on a battlefield with explosive vests. They blow themselves up as well as the invaders and might cause some collateral damage. If your body wins, then there’s a clean up crew that handles the mess, and gives the ‘all clear’, the soldiers leave. The swelling goes down.
This all happens in a matter of hours.
But what if the soldiers don’t win? Or they’re pushed into a stale mate? The bacteria is gaining more soldiers and spreading their toxin, the injured area is filling up with casualties and forming what’s called pus. The swelling gets so bad that blood circulation is hampered.
The whole limb could die.
This is what doctors want to avoid. So they give you antibiotics to help clear the infection faster, drain pus from the injury if needed, and elevate the area to relieve swelling so your tissues don’t get starved of oxygen while the fighting continues. 🙂
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