You learn something new everyday. For years I’ve been spelling Dwyane and Dwayne. This is good timing since he’s been diagnosed with a thigh contusion, which is another way of saying thigh bruise. So, you have Dwyane spelled another way and contusion explained a different way. Awesome.
The injury to Wade, a member of the Heat team that is going to win it all, comes at a rough time. The Heat are trying to finish the season strong and position themselves for the playoffs.
Dwyane spoke about his latest injury, which occurred when Travis Outlaw kneed him:
When the game ended, the pain was at a 10. Right now, I’m at a 9.7
Ouch.
What is a thigh bruise? A thigh bruise occurs when a blunt trauma occurs on your thigh. In any bruising, your body is reacting to a violent interaction where capillaries and sometimes veins burst or rupture. The discoloration you see is blood seeping into open tissues of your body outside of the capillaries and veins.
How do you get a thigh bruise? Trauma. Someone slams into your thigh hard with their knee, like what happened to Wade. You will also see a high incident of thigh bruises in football, soccer and to a lesser extent hockey. Thigh bruises also occur when a batter is hit by a pitch in baseball.
As a side note, thigh pads do actually mitigate bruising by disseminating the force of the impact over a larger area.
How do you treat a thigh bruise? Rest is critical, but past that ice helps with swelling. Really, bruising is your body’s signal for localized circulatory issue and it will resolve on its own. The body needs to dispose of the blood in the area of the bruise, so light massaging helps move the bruise blood out.
How long will you be out with a thigh? It depends on the severity and the impact to your performance. Obviously, the higher severity the greater impact. If it is a bruise that sort of hurts, but you can play through the pain, you can get back almost right away. Now, if you’re in Wade territory with a 9.6 out of 10 on the pain scale, you’ll need to see a professional to ensure there isn’t permanent damage.