If you’ve ever hit the road riding a motorcycle, then you know what road rash is. But did you know that you can suffer the same types of injuries doing multiple other activities, both on and off the road? Skin abrasions are a common injury in many different types of situations and there are many different risk factors for sustaining one of these incredibly painful, long-lasting injuries. The people most likely to sustain road rash and other skin abrasions are:
Motorcycle riders who lay their bikes down in the road during a motorcycle crash.
Bicyclists who fall off their bicycles on the road, the sidewalk, or other surface.
Roller bladers who fall on the sidewalk or other surface while skating.
Athletes who fall and slide across the ground, causing tears in their skin or the surface of their skin to rub off.
Workers in occupations who use machinery that rubs against their skin, most commonly those who use circular motion equipment that turns repeatedly and at high rpms.
Skin abrasions are painful injuries because they pull off multiple layers of skin and expose your nerve endings. The pain may stick around for days or weeks and even become more intolerable as your skin grows back and the nerve endings repair themselves.
The Treatment for Scrapes
Most people believe that the best way to take care of an abrasion on the skin is to clean it at home with hydrogen peroxide and then dress the wound, cleaning it daily until you are completely healed. And since this is likely what you, your parents, and their parents were taught, who would think any different? The truth is that the best treatment for your skin abrasions can only come from a doctor who can use proper irrigation cleaning methods, hospital grade dressings, and special antiseptic ointments aimed at promoting healing, and reducing the risk of scarring and infection.
Avoiding Abrasions
The best way to prevent skin abrasions in all of your activities is to limit the amount of your skin that is exposed. Wearing gloves at work, and long sleeves and long pants in your activities can help minimize the tearing of surfaces against your skin, limiting your risk of sustaining skin abrasions, road rash, and other serious injuries. No matter what type of work or sport you are engaging in, you should always keep a doctor’s number and a first aid kit nearby.