Why does a small cut, like a itsy bitsy tear near your fingernail sometimes hurt just as much if not more than a larger more noticeable wound?
In: Biology
With small cuts like you describe, or paper cuts, the cut is so shallow that it doesn’t bleed. As a result, you have nerve endings exposed to air which causes the great amount of pain that you describe. Deeper cuts that bleed, have blood coating the nerve endings and prevent the nerve ending exposure to the air.
Here’s a fantastic LPT for you, if you get a paper cut, wash it, dry it, and then take a stick of chapstick and wipe it over the cut. It will create a barrier between the nerve endings and the surrounding air, and will stop the pain almost instantly. Same for hangnails.
It’s all about the amount of pain receptors in the wound area. The more pain receptors, more intense is the pain. The pain receptors are all around your skin, but some areas have more than others.
So is possible that one small cut on your hand had crossed the same amount of pain recetors than an big cut on your leg.
It’s all about nerve endings exposed. Ppl with 3 degree burns don’t feel pain on the 3rd degree burn areas themselves bc the nerve endings are burned away… it’s the 1st & 2nd degree ones that are so horrifically painful.
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