Stitches for kids...how does it go down?

[Anonymous]

This weekend BIL described the time their then 2-year old had to get stitches in his forehead. It involved a straight jacket-sounding contraption, screaming bloody murder, restraints, general gore, etc.

I got weak in the knees listening to it. Is it always like this? What's standard procedure these days? FWIW I never had stitches growing up so it's always been this unknown horror to me. I have a 9-month old and am scared sh*tless about her needing them some day. Can't they just use glue!? Agh.

So lay it on me...how does it work?

[Anonymous]

No it does not go down like that.

They pull the arms back so they don't move, the kid is getting stitches in his face.

They numb it. The person in the hospital in calm and soothing. The parents help to keep the child calm and still. After the initial shot they don't feel anything.

My kids have had stitches/glue at least 10 times and it is not some horror scene like you described.

[Anonymous]

It really depends on how still the kid can stay. Yes, lots of times they can use surgical glue. Sometimes they can't. If your kid ever needs stitches, request a plastic surgeon, ESPECIALLY if the injury is on the face.

[Anonymous]

It depends on the age of the child. A really young kid you can swaddle. A four year old, you can sing songs and they will sit still. A 2 yr old who screams if you look at them wrong (think 2 yr old getting a check up) involves a papoose and screaming. They are numb just indignant.

Glue vs. stitches depends on how deep the cut is. My 2 yr old had to have stitches on her face and it was an event quickly forgotten by a Popsicle the nurse gave us afterward.

[Anonymous]

If your kid ever needs stitches and it's not a dire emergency, make sure you go to a hospital with a pediatric ER. That would be Faifax in NOVA. I presume Children's in DC.

[Anonymous]

Yes, it was horrible like that for our 2 year old. Straight jacket papoose thing. Screaming. Crying.

[Anonymous]

I laid on the bed. 2 year old on top of my. I wrapped legs around his. Pinned both arms. Dad held his head. He was fine but it was critical he not move his head (delicate work on his lip). I think it helped that I was holding him vs him bring strapped to a table. You do what you have to do.

[Anonymous]

Yes it was like that for my 2 yo too at a plastic surgeons. I had to hold her head still while they did it. It was pretty traumatic for me.

[Anonymous]

children's Dc was great - my 3 yr old needed stitches and was terrified. they applied numbing medication (a gel) right away with a gauze bandaid on top to hold it in. After that set for 20 min, they injected another stronger numbing medication - she couldn't feel it after that first numbing gel. it was brilliant. it was a completely painless procedure - and it was LONG - 45 min to do three layers of sewing.

they did use a papoose, but she could keep one arm out - which she used to hold a princess wand that glowed and glittered and played music - brought to her by child life. she also got a princess movie to watch and the child life lady brought multiple toys for her to play with.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:children's Dc was great - my 3 yr old needed stitches and was terrified. they applied numbing medication (a gel) right away with a gauze bandaid on top to hold it in. After that set for 20 min, they injected another stronger numbing medication - she couldn't feel it after that first numbing gel. it was brilliant. it was a completely painless procedure - and it was LONG - 45 min to do three layers of sewing.

they did use a papoose, but she could keep one arm out - which she used to hold a princess wand that glowed and glittered and played music - brought to her by child life. she also got a princess movie to watch and the child life lady brought multiple toys for her to play with.

The laceration was on her forehead.

[Anonymous]

My 4yo had to get stitches in his hand two months ago and it was pretty bad. They wrapped his lower body and the uninvolved arm up in a sheet, then one person held his legs and another person held his arm in place so they could do the stitches. He screamed and cried a lot even after they had numbed him because he was scared. It sucked, but he needed the stitches. He was fine after it was over. FWIW, he later had to have surgery because it turned out he had cut a tendon, and it was no picnic when he came out of the anesthesia either. But again, he's fine, I don't think it emotionally scarred him or anything. The during part is not fun, but it's just like anything where you have to weigh the immediate discomfort against the greater good.

[Anonymous]

As PPs have said, the procedure really varies widely depending on the age of the child, location of the wound, and severity of it (i.e., no, they can't just use glue in every case). I've had stitches multiple times, and the one consistent thing I've found is that the local anesthetic is by far the most painful part of the procedure. So, if your child is old enough to understand, it's worth emphasizing and helping them get through that moment in particular. FWIW, several of the times I had stitches were as a kid (though not as young as two), and I remember the lidocaine more than anything.

[Anonymous]

Smoothly for our 2 year old DD, who needed 1 stitch inside her lip.

Usually she screams bloody murder, but this time, THANKFULLY, she was interested in the whole hospital procedure and stayed quite still. We were so surprised!

My older DC who is very calm and composed goes all to pieces in medical situations. Strange...

[Anonymous]

When DD was 2yo she had 6 stitches to her forehead at CNMC. It was as OP described--papoose board, screaming, the whole nine yards. They had to irrigate the wound pretty thoroughly, so that was also weird and gross as they kept sticking this long syringe into the gash and squirting water. Tons of water and blood and tears and snot and DD thrashing around. I hate blood and such, but sometimes you just do what you have to do. I looked DD in the eyes (which meant I had an up close view of everything they were doing), and talked and sung to her the whole time. She was fine immediately afterwards.

Conversely, my 6yo nephew had stiches in roughly the same place. He calmly sat and played on an Ipad the whole time.

[Anonymous]

OP, what you describe sounds pretty close to our experience. My 2 year old had stitches at Inova Fairfax this summer. He screamed bloody murder and they put him in the straight jacket/papoose thing. Poor guy needed 9 stitches. We had them removed 5 days later, which was painless and quick by comparison. The staff did an awesome job.