Bites

The most common bites that we see in the office are not bites from our four-legged friends, but rather from our kiddos’ best buddies at preschool.  And, even though Johnny’s best buddy is normally a cute and happy friend kid, human mouths are super gross.  The good thing, though, is that most kid bites don’t break the skin.  If it does; however, the mainstay of treatment is lots of washing with clean water from the tap.  The tricky thing with bites occurs when it is large enough to need stitches or some other artificial closure of the skin. In this case, the wound would need to be evaluated by a medical professional as the goal is to keep bite wounds open during the healing process if possible.  If we close up a bite wound with some bad bacteria it, it can create the perfect environment for that bacteria to grow and spread and cause damage.  Small bites on the face are frequently closed for cosmetic reasons, but, even then, we usually put the child on a strong antibiotic to prevent possible infections from occurring.  

The same strategy goes for bites from dogs and other pets at home or at the park. Another great reason to teach your children to always ask before trying to pet an animal they don’t know.

But what about rabies!!!  This super rare, but super severe disease is spread by lots of different (mostly wild) animals.  So, if you or your kiddo get bitten by a raccoon, skunk, bat, or fox you need to let your pediatrician or local Emergency room doc know ASAP to possibly get prophylaxis treatment.   Dogs and cats can also carry this disease, but it is not often seen in the domestic setting.  And if you let your kiddo around someone’s house pet and notice they are acting nutty and foaming at the mouth, remove yourself and your child from that situation posthaste.