Symptoms of soft tissue injury, local and overall view

Soft tissue is generally more easily injured, and there are no open wounds at the injured site. Symptoms of soft tissue injury include soft tissue swelling, subcutaneous hematoma, and varying degrees of pain. There are varying degrees of functional impairment, such as difficulty opening the mouth. Apart from this, what other symptoms are there?

Local manifestations

1. Pain: Patients with soft tissue injuries all experience varying degrees of pain, which can gradually ease after 2 to 3 days. If the pain gets worse or persists, it could mean an infection. When accompanied by visceral damage, the pain is often not clearly located, so analgesics should be used with caution before the diagnosis is confirmed.

2. Swelling: caused by bleeding and traumatic inflammatory exudation, often accompanied by local ecchymosis or hematoma. When the swelling is severe, it may cause compressive blood supply obstruction in local tissues or distal limbs, manifested as decreased skin temperature, pale color, etc.

3. Functional disorder: caused by anatomical structure destruction, pain and inflammatory response, but the degree of functional disorder will vary depending on the degree and location of trauma.

4. Wounds or wound surfaces: They are unique signs of open soft tissue trauma and can generally be divided into three categories: clean wounds, contaminated wounds and infected wounds.

Systemic manifestations

1. Fever: Traumatic bleeding or absorption of decomposition products of tissue necrosis can lead to an increase in body temperature, generally around 38°C. If combined with infection, high fever may occur.

2. Changes in vital signs: The release of inflammatory mediators, bleeding, pain, and mental stress after trauma can all cause symptoms such as increased pulse and heart rate, slightly higher or lower blood pressure, and deep and rapid breathing.

3. Others: Due to blood and fluid loss, patients may experience symptoms such as thirst, oliguria, fatigue and insomnia.