Joined: 31 Aug 2007 Posts: 2 Location: Wenzhou, China
Large Hematoma After Giving Blood. Posted: 08-31-07 03:09am
I have a large bruise\hematoma on the
inside of my left forearm which appeared
immediately after a blood test this
morning. It is situated directly over the
large blue vein that runs the length of my
arm from wrist to elbow and is about four
inches long and one inch wide. The area
is much more painful and sore than I've
ever experienced from a blood test in the
past and while the hematoma does not
appear to have increased in size in the
last few hours it is still swollen and the
area in the centre has lost its bluish
"veiny" colour and is turning red. Again,
the area is blue, not brown as in the case
of normal bruises, and the swollen area is
slightly harder than the surrounding area.
Some context: I am an English teacher
living in China and I was required to
submit to a health examination, including
a blood test, this morning. Initially the
doctor was unable to find a vein (this has
happened everytime I've had blood taken)
and I was passed off to another doctor,
who decided to take from the large central
vein in my arm instead.
I'm wondering if this is something I
should be concerned about, or if I should
just continue to ice and elevate it and
let it resolve itself on its own. The
fact of the matter is that I'm hesitant to
go to a Chinese hospital to have it looked
at for a variety of reasons including the
cost and the language barrier. If it's
something I can reasonably expect will
just fix itself, I'll breathe a little
easier.
