Bumps, bruises and scrapes are common in kids as they explore the world around them. Here are some tips for how to manage common injuries at home and when to take your child to see a medical professional.

First aid for cuts and scrapes

To manage a wound at home, wash it carefully with soap and water and hold clean gauze or cloth over the wound and apply pressure to stop bleeding. Once the bleeding stops, apply a band aid. Depending on the severity of the wound, most wounds can have bandages removed after 24 hours once the healing begins. Covering the wound may help protect it from further injury.

Signs a wound may need stitches or further medical attention:

• If the wound is gaping open and the edges don’t come together easily
• If it is still spurting out blood after 15min of holding firm pressure
• If the cut is deeper than ½ inch
• If it is a prominent cut on the face, stitches are best to minimize scarring
• If it is from an animal bite that breaks skin
• If debris is visible in the wound
• If it looks infected – pus, bright redness spreading around the skin, severe pain

First aid for sprains

Active children may injure their ankles, knees, elbows or other parts of the body. To manage an injury at home, have children rest, apply ice, compression (with an ACE wrap or bandage) and elevate the injury for the first 24 hours. Ice can be applied for 10-15 minutes at a time 4 times a day for the first 24-48 hours.

Here are the times when your child should see a doctor for their injury:

• If they cannot bear any weight after the injury, or if they continue to have trouble bearing weight after taking pain medications and applying ice
• If there is severe pain with touching or moving the joint or bone
• If there is numbness/tingling
• If a strain/sprain does not seem to be improving after 5-7 days
• Visible deformity

First aid for burns

If your child has sustained a burn on the skin, immediately cool the area under cool running water for 10-20 minutes. Do not apply ice. If running water is not available, use a cool cloth and replace it once the cloth becomes warm. If a blister forms, do not pop it as the blister helps protect the skin against infection. If the burn is mild and can be managed at home, apply antibiotic ointment to help protect against infection. A moist bandage should be applied that does not stick to the burned skin.

Times to go to urgent care or the emergency room for a burn:

• If it is located on sensitive areas such as hands, feet, face, genitals, eyes
• If it is larger than the size of an adult’s palm
• If it is a severe burn – often these look deep, leathery, dry, white or charred
• If there are signs of difficulty breathing or your child is not acting like themself
• If you are not able to control pain with over-the-counter Tylenol or ibuprofen

First aid for choking

Choking in babies and toddlers can happen from the foods they eat or from small objects they put in their mouth as they become increasingly mobile and are exploring the world around them.

To learn how to react when your child is choking, it is best to take a hands-on first aid course.

You can recognize a child is choking if they are coughing, suddenly having difficulty breathing or having a hard time speaking and holding their throat.

If a child is coughing and can still talk (or a baby is coughing and audibly crying), encourage them to keep coughing to dislodge the object. Try to avoid patting them on the back to prevent the object from getting further dislodged.

If a child is unable to talk, cough, cry or make noise, but is still conscious, call 911 and begin Heimlich abdominal thrusts if you are trained to do so. For infants, back blows and abdominal thrusts are performed. It is important for parents to be trained to be the most effective in performing these maneuvers.

First aid for nose bleeds

Nose bleeds are very common in children, and typically even recurrent nose bleeds that stop on their own are not a cause for alarm. If your child gets a nosebleed, have them sit up and apply pressure on the sides of the nose and lean forward. Encourage your child to open their mouth and breathe through their mouth. Do not have them blow their nose as this could further irritate the nasal mucosa and cause more bleeding. If the bleeding persists for more than 20-30 minutes, take your child to the emergency department or urgent care to help stop the bleeding.

First aid for allergic reactions

Allergic reactions may happen from food, insects, plants or other things that the skin comes in contact with.

Here are examples to differentiate a severe versus mild allergic reaction:

• Severe: wheezing, difficulty breathing, repeated vomiting, loss of consciousness or dizziness, swelling of lips, tongue, face
• Mild: hives (itchy raised pale red rash), runny nose, watery eyes, mild stomach cramps without profuse vomiting

If a child is having a severe reaction (anaphylaxis), administer an Epi pen according to the instructions if they have one, and/or call 911 if there is no access to an epi pen.

If a child is having a mild reaction, the best medicine to give is cetirizine or another second-generation antihistamine. This will not prevent severe symptoms but can help children become more comfortable and improve itching in a mild allergic reaction. If there is a localized skin reaction that is itchy, over the counter hydrocortisone cream can also help with itching.

Of note, the most common cause of hives in children is a viral illness. If your child develops hives without severe symptoms but has not had an exposure to a new food within 2 hours prior, it may be due to a virus. Talk with your pediatrician if you are unsure if a food could have caused a reaction.