Badly bruised cheek and lump under skin not going anywhere fast...

[Beautifullettuce]

Before Easter my 3 yo DS collided with the edge of a screen at pre-school. It left a horrendous bruise. Now, 6 wks later, the bruising has almost all gone but there is a hard lump onder the skin which forms a big crease in his face when he talks/smiles. It's really altered the shape of his face. I took him to the GP 2 wks ago who was unconcerned - he's not in any pain - she said to re-visit if it shows no improvement in a month. Has anyone had any experience of this? Is the hardness scar tissue that will eventually dissolve? Thanks in advance.

Yes! My DS1 had exactly the same. It took about 3 months to totally disperse but it's all absolutely fine now.
Horrid, isn't it?!

yes we had exactly the same, took months. Doctor told us it often happens when they've had a very hard bang (something comes together and forms a hard lump).

I felt terribly guilty as we didn't take her to hosp (she was running and tripped and hit her cheek bone on the corner of a bench) and about 6 weeks later, went to the doc for something else and he asked what the lump was

Yes it has a name actually, a ..... Heamatoma, can't remember the first word, sorry. My ds was kicked very hard in the shin and had a horrendous bruise. After the bruise had gone the lump was still there. Dr said can take weeks to go. Dr told me a warm bath helped which it did but harder with the face. Maybe try a warm flannel on it.

We had exactly the same with DS2!

It took about 3 or 4 months to go away. Cannot see anything at all now.

This is why I love MNers! Reassurance all round, thanks so much ladies.

So so happy I found this thread.... my DS fell off his bike and had the same thing I was starting to panic... Thank you everyone!!!

Yup, had one here too, DS come over the handlebars of his bike and landed on his chin. Huge purple egg and this weird lump. Took nearly a year to fade, and there is still a small amount there now. We found massaging it helped it break up

Absolutely on the edge of my seat hoping to hear an update from anyone who posted about their children experiencing this. My DD tipped over and bumped her cheek on a leg of a chair about seven weeks ago, and her beautiful, chubby little cheek is dimpled and a slightly purple. All my googling says it's permanent. What say you, MNers?

My son had his cheek ingured one year ago. He was 6 at that time. He hit it when climbing on the low metal fence. He had bruising as well as hematoma. We were massaging daily and applying warm compress for some time after. Now exactly a year later his smile is still a little bit affected, the large dimple is still present in the cheek but the initial hematoma is no longer there. I don't know if this is something worth beeing fixed surgicaly. Should we continue to wait for improvement, or will it remain the same permanently? I was always thinking it will go away, but something tells me it won't :(

Hi,
I just want to know if the dimple every went away. My son has exactly the same thing...a lump and know a dimple for over a year.
and its not fading....

Did anything help?
My son also has a lump and dimple in the cheek.

Yes this is a haematoma. The lump will stay for quite a while and gradually grey softer. Daily massage with a small circular motion of your fingertips and any moisturiser will help.

Hi there, I have the space I fell down the stairs and hit my cheek at such an impact which has left bad bruising and swelling, the swelling has gone down but there is a rock hard lump under my cheek? Will this go down? It’s so painful to massage ( only happend last week however ) can I do anything to speed up the process of this lump going ?

My step son has a tiny bruise on his cheek that looks as if it is going away but another one is above it and there is a very hard and somewhat large knot underneath the bruise. The knot seems to be getting bigger everyday. Doctors don't have a clue. They said to keep watching it. I am very concerned.

Hi just wondering if anyone who posted on this has had any success with the lumps disappearing? My daughter fell into a bush and has a bruised dent on her face with two hard lumps under the skin. Again they do not look like they will go fast, it's been 5 months now.

Please help, it really upsets me!

Hello, my son had the same issue a few months ago. My dog pushed him and he fell on the edge of the table. He had a huge bruise and then when it went away, there was a big lump on his cheek. I was so scared that it will stay forever. It took about 3 months but now it is much better, there is still a small lump but not very visible.

Hi thank you so much for replying. May I ask if the lump was external or under the skin? My daughter's lumps are still there, under the skin (cheek near mouth). They do not seem to be getting better!

For an injury that’s not easy to soak like cheek, I used a water bottle with warm water for my daughter after she collided with a wood chair. There was a huge bruise instantly so we iced the first few days, then switched to heat. I have used a heating pad for myself but being as she’s so little the water bottle worked out perfectly!

I fell down the stairs and hit my right cheek on a window sill in late October of last year. At first the area was just very bruised and swollen for a month or two. I got X-rays and there was no fracture and nothing wrong other than aesthetically. Now there is a dimple where the bump is and my face and smile are lop-sided. It has become less noticeable as time has gone on, but I hate the way I look now. Does anyone know of any surgeons that have done this type of procedure or know of any other solutions?

Any more updates from these?? We are now in the same situation 😭

Cheeseballer - in our case it's remained the same after 4 years, unfortunately. We are used to it now to be honest, but it pained us for a long time in the beginning. Basically, the issue is fat necrosis, where the fat in the cheek has died from the hit. It's what's known as a traumatic facial dimple which has occurred within the subcutaneous tissue. I don't think there are any options until the child is an adult to be honest, by which time if they so choose they can seek medical assistance - but that might depend where in the world you live. In the US, for example, they might be more open to treatment than in the UK. Other than that, I don't think many surgeons would touch a child with a barge pole, as their faces are changing all the time. The only options I've read about in adults with similar have been in relation to fat harvesting and grafting of person's own fat to damaged area - but even then, I'm unsure just how successful such treatment actually is. It will certainly never be the same again, and as hard as it is right now, you WILL eventually get used to it in time, because you have to, for your child's sake. I know - I've been there, and researched this type of injury to the nth degree. PM me if you would like to ask anything else.

Gosh thanks Dumberthandumb, I'm sorry that there has been no improvement for your child's injury. I took my boy to be checked over and the dr/nurse practitioner (not sure which) seemed a little vague and dismissive but suggested a haematoma and to have it checked again if it's the same in a few weeks. I will wait and see but I am concerned that this isn't something that will simply resolve. Thank you so much for your reply, it's much appreciated 😊

Hi. I know this is an old thread, but did the lump disappear? I’m in the same boat now. Thank you!