HELP: My toddler SPLIT his lip this morning - and those who cant understand why people post about "emergencies" rather than going to the docs, quiet please.

[QuintessentialShadows]

This is not a "oh my good what do I do should we go to A&E" type of post which has been so much criticized here on a thread lately and nearly kept me from posting

My toddler fell and split his lip. I wonder if it will grow with a split so it looks slighthy parted, or if it will come together?

I dont think it needs a stitch as it is not bleeding, and I have never seen a stitched lip. I dont think this warrants a trip to the A&E. But if I am wrong, please tell me, and I will take him to the doctor.

Very difficult. As you say they don't tend to suture lips unless they are hanging off.
Lips tend to heal really quickly with minimal scarring, so it's just a case of see what happens.

DD fell over Sunday, bloody nose and cut lip, didn't occur to me to take her anywhere.

im sure it will come together again. but if you are unsure it wont hurt to go the docs.

Sometimes, they will 'glue' it together which means a)it's less likely to come open whilst it's healing and b) less likely to scar

split lips are normal part of childhood - do you mean it has a cut line down it or are there bits hanging off it?

the line thing bleeds profusely, heals extremely quickly - mop up the blood put a cold pack on it to reduce swelling - he'll be fine

if his lip is hanging off it may need stitching, if the cut is on the lip it doesn't

They don't use glue on lips as doesn't work due to saliva, same with steri strips and nearly everything else !!

Hi QS,
My DS1 did the same a year ago when he was 2 1/2. I found it terrifying as there was SO much blood, but it stopped pretty soon after I rammed an ice pack on there and pinned him down!
It began to heal within a day, but I have to admit that he has a silver scar now. I like to think that when he's older it'll be a story to tell the ladies before he kisses them!

lula, ah yes, my DDs only ever had heads glued

Thanks, I really appreciate your time to reply.

It is cut like a fine line down. Looks clean and neat. Bled a bit to start with, I held a cold wet flanne onto it, and let him sip cold water. There are no bits hanging off. It looks a bit swollen, but it is not bleeding anymore.

Thanks, I really appreciate your time to reply.

It is cut like a fine line down. Looks clean and neat. Bled a bit to start with, I held a cold wet flanne onto it, and let him sip cold water. There are no bits hanging off. It looks a bit swollen, but it is not bleeding anymore.

Should I give him an ice lolly? (for the swelling)

That sounds like DD'd one, she is fine, its a bit swollen but not bothering her.

heads are great for glue

Ice lolly very good as does the same job as pinning them down but they like it !

glue, they can glue it to minimise the scar

dont bother what people say about emergencys...dera god do what YOU feel is best for your boy....

glue
glue
gleu.

Yeah give him an ice lolly (not just for the swelling. Just because )
If its a fine line and not bleeding it should be fine. I've had loads of them myself and I have no scars. (cage fighting is a dangerous job )

lips have lines on them - children heal quickly and scars fade

Fantastic, I will give him an icelolly!

(He is so boisterous, and so lovely and lively, and totally without sense and so spontaneous, and so utterly lovely. )

He broke his arm when he wasnt even one, he had 4 stitches on his forehead in February, and now this. I have done a really good job of keeping his older brother from injury, but this little one?? I fret.

My dd has a problem with fingers. She broke one 2 mths ago, then they have been stuck in lifts, doors, rollers. Too long to carry on. If she gets to adulthood with them all intact i will be surprised !!!

I know what you mean.
This morning as we were going down the stairs he decided to do a Tarzan on the bannister, so he suddenly held on, let his feet go, and swung forward, and lost grip. So of course he went bumpetibump bump. He has a sore back too. I bet he wont do this again in a hurry. There is a reason I dont let people take him to the playground unless they know him very well, and even then.....

My son actually did bite a chunk off his lip. We were told it needed suturing, went to A&E, waited hours, saw specialist who said 'Hmm, as it's come right off and you haven't brought the missing bit , not much we can do!'
Three years later, he has a faint triangular scar and plays trumpet without any difficulty. Don't worry. At least, not about the lip. We do practically have a season ticket to A&E with this particular child (broken arm... broken leg...gashed head...aarghh)

Dd has no fear. You find her climbimg up the metal frames in the playground and then catch her as she is just about to walk off . She is just 2 !!

If it is clean cut and not reaching onto the skin above the lip... Task area then it should heal fine.
dd put her tooth through her top lip and sliced it we went to docs as she also chipped a tooth. She was 3 and no treatment was advised and no scar either. It bled and bled she had badly grazed tash area... But healed really well

I know all about daredevils . . . dd2 has no fear. She jumps off everything. She jumps in the bath She finds the highest slides in the park, charges up the steps and flies down slide headfirst/backwards upside down. The joyful looks on her face when she's doing stuff makes the fear and heart in mouth worthwhile. I do supervise but I have to hold myself back from mollycoddling her. She's not even 2 yet and she's soooo tiny. Her older sister at almost 3 is much meeker and quieter. She does some stuff but at a more controlled thought out pace. And which is the one who has been in A&E with a broken arm? The quiet one.

My ds split his lip among many other injuries of verying degrees of severity on Friday night. A and E didn't even put the lip down on the list of injuries, and it's healed already. The did put one of the grazed knees, and the bashed nose, so obviously lips aren't considered worth bothering with.

DD1 stood on her scoot-along aged 18 months, it flew out from under her and she landed face-first on a concrete floor - she had a triangular split in her lip and there was buckets of blood.

Our next-door neighbour was a nurse and when I rushed in to her she said there was no point going to A&E because there's nothing they can do with lips (this was 25 yrs ago, maybe they can now)

Anyway FWIW she fell on her face quite regularly as a toddler and the split reopened each time but you have to look very hard to see the scar now.

HTH

lips bleed like crazy, it usually looks miles worse than it is, there's a very good blood supply there (hence why they're red I suppose. Or something)
DD split hers once, and nearly put her tooth all the way through another time. She's 3.5 now and has a small scar just above her top lip, but it's barely noticeable and I expect it to fade a lot in the future

as said by others, there's not a lot to do except bathe it. I took DD to the out of ours doctory place with the tooth incident but mainly to see about her tooth rather than her lip (it's slightly chipped but survived)