Recovering from facial lacerations

[ohnoesitstori]

So, my story takes place in a yet to be determined modern American city, and basically the main character ends up with a cut starting at the corner of his mouth and going about 2 inches across his cheek. It's done with a box-cutter in unhygienic conditions, and it will be several hours before he can get treatment for it. (Maybe longer? I'm not sure

Comments

[alassenya]

He'll be able to talk throughout, though his speech will obviously be distorted until his cheek is repaired, and labial consonants (p, b, m) may be very difficult for him). While the stitches are in he will obviously have to take care to speak without moving his lips too much, to avoid ripping the flesh. Drinking will be more comfortable than eating, at least for the first 48 hrs, and he won't really be able to clean his teeth properly on the affected side so salt water rinses are probably his best option (mouthwashes might work but most contain alcohol so not only would they hurt but they would impair the healing process

[ohnoesitstori]

Thanks!
Hmm, so if I want a highly visible scar, I might want to complicate things a bit. I have heard that some people put two blades together with a matchstick in between, so that it's harder to stitch up cleanly. Would that make a significant impact on healing time, do you think?

[alassenya]

Oh I'm sorry, I didn't pick up that you actually wanted a visible scar. If that's the case, your attacker needs to use something that will create a very jagged wound that can't be stitched up easily - a coarse hacksaw or straight saw blade would be good (or one of those really cheap and coarse serrated steak knives you get in the supermarket). A really dirty blade/wound or a delay of 18hrs or more in getting medical care would also be useful, because then the wound is contaminated and can only be held loosely together rather than stitched closely, so that no anaerobic pockets are created, and that will create a wider and more prominent scar. If your attacker is using broken glass then you might get a double cut which actually removes some tissue (not your parallel line cut as above, that wouldn't remove enough tissue) - you really want to lose a chunk so that the skinfolds don't line up - that will give you a really nasty puckered scar. Depending on the size and amount of distortion to the cheek tissue, your victim may also end

[lilacsigil]

A cut like that is unlikely to need a liquid diet or other special recovery conditions apart from maybe an antiseptic mouthwash (or salt-water wash) to help keep it clean. He probably won't have a speech impediment once the cut is closed up. Mouths heal pretty quickly, but the cheek is a fairly mobile area so I'd expect the stitches to be in for about 10-14 days. Unless there's an infection (which is entirely possible) or the doctor is seriously incompetent, it probably won't scar severely.

[tabaqui]

This actor (Tommy Flanagan) actually has those scars, and his speech is definitely not distorted.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tommy_Flanagan_%28actor%29

[ohnoesitstori]

I'm going to have to check out a few of the movies he's been in, thank you!

[tabaqui]

I suggest Plunkett and Macleane. It's a fun movie.
(I'm a big Robert Carlyle fan.)

:)

[anonymous]

Also, if a person wants to get rid of a scar, even years later they can get a 'scar revision' surgery. It basically means cutting away a large wide scar and replacing it with a small neat one which shows less. this, even in controlled circs would mean going through the whole healing process twice.

One result of the injury you describe would probably result in damaged/less feeling in the scar area. Touch there might feel numb or unpleasant.

[eglantine_br]

The one above is me. Don't know why it didn't show.