Degloved Face: Degloving Causes, Treatment, and Prevention Explained

Imagine a sudden, jarring impact—whether from a car crash, a workplace mishap, or an unexpected encounter with an animal. In that moment, the delicate skin and tissues of your face are violently torn away from the underlying skull. This is what we call a Degloved Face injury—a name that itself sends shivers down the spine. But fear not! 

In this comprehensive blog, we’ll explore what a Degloved Face really is, explore treatment options, and discover the path to recovery. Buckle up, because we’re about to navigate a tough situation with resilience and knowledge.   

Table of Content 

1) What is Degloved Face

2) Key Statistics on Degloved Face Injuries

3) Types of Degloving Injuries 

4) Symptoms of Degloved Face 

5) What causes Degloved Face or Degloving Injuries? 

6) How is a Degloved Face or Degloving Injury treated? 

7) Challenges Encountered in Treating Degloved Face and Degloving Injuries 

8) Conclusion 

What is a Degloved Face?

A Degloved Face, also known as an avulsion injury, is a severe and traumatic condition. It occurs when the top layers of skin and tissue are torn away from the underlying muscle, connective tissue, or bone, severing their blood supply. Degloving injuries can happen due to accidents like car crashes, falls, or industrial incidents.

In a Degloved Injury, the skin is stripped back from the affected area like a glove. These injuries can be superficial or dangerously deep, affecting underlying layers. They often result in serious long-term effects and require immediate medical attention. Even if the skin remains attached as a flap, it can lose its blood supply. Prompt treatment is crucial for effective recovery.

Key Statistics on Degloved Face Injuries

Degloved Face injuries, a severe type of trauma often resulting from high-impact incidents, require careful management and treatment. Below are some vital statistics and information derived from recent studies:

Types of Degloving Injuries 

There are mainly two types of Degloving. They are known as open Degloving and closed Degloving. 

1) Open Degloving 

Open Degloving typically occurs when your skin and tissue are ripped away, exposing your muscle, bone, or connective tissue. In many cases, the skin might still be attached partially as a flap near the wound. Open Degloving Injuries are mostly caused by:

a) Accidents with industrial or farm equipment 

b) Falls from heights

c) Animal bites 

d) Traffic accidents

e) Sports injuries

The most common body areas where Open Degloving Injuries can happen are the torso, legs, face and scalp. However, they can affect any of your body parts, including the fingers, arms, or feet. These types of Injuries are serious, and they require immediate care to reduce blood loss and prevent various infections.

2) Closed Degloving 

Closed Degloving Injuries might not look serious because you can't always see them. Sometimes, the only sign is a bruise. These injuries happen when the top layer of skin and tissue gets separated from the deeper tissues, creating a pocket under the skin. This pocket, known as a Morel-Lavallée lesion, can fill up with lymph fluid, blood, and fat.

These injuries usually occur from the same kinds of accidents as Open Degloving Injuries. Closed Degloving Injuries often happen around the top of the hip bone, known as the greater trochanter. Other common areas include the: 

a) Torso 

b) Buttocks 

c) Lower spine 

d) Shoulder blades 

e) Knees

Doctors often use an MRI scan to diagnose these injuries because it can spot the Morel-Lavallée lesions. 

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Symptoms of Degloved Face 

Your symptoms will depend on whether you have a closed or open Degloving Injury and how severe it is. Common symptoms of Open Degloving Injuries include: 

a) Extreme pain 

b) Deep lacerations or open wounds 

c) Exposed bone, muscle, tendons, nerves, and/or connective tissue 

d) Severe blood loss 

e) Total or partial skin separation 

f) Tissue death 

g) Shock 

Symptoms of closed Degloving Injuries include: 

a) Pain 

b) Bruising and skin discoloration 

c) Swelling 

d) Tenderness 

e) Dry, cracked skin

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What Causes Degloved Face or Degloving Injuries?

Any part of your body with skin can get degloved. This often happens during high-energy accidents. For example, if your long hair gets caught in a conveyor belt, it could violently rip the skin and soft tissue from your skull and underlying muscles. This is one way you could end up with a Degloved Face, but these injuries most commonly affect the hands, feet, legs, and arms. 

Another way this can happen is if a tyre runs over your foot. The intense pressure from the tyre, especially if you try to pull your foot out or if the tyre drags over it, can peel off your skin and soft tissue, leaving a degloved foot. What Causes Degloved Face?

Degloving Injuries are typically caused by: 

a) Car, cycling, or motorcycle accidents 

b) Incidents with heavy machinery like farm equipment or conveyor belts 

c) Falls from heights 

d) Sports injuries 

e) Animal bites or attacks 

f) Rings getting ripped off fingers 

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How to Diagnose Degloved Face or Degloving Injuries? 

Degloving injuries are diagnosed by doctors through a thorough medical examination and a detailed history of the injury. They may order tests to determine the extent of the damage. While open degloving injuries can appear dramatic and obvious, assessing the full extent of a degloved area can be challenging. 

Visually examining the degloved skin might not reveal the full extent of the underlying damage. Skin viability can be difficult to assess using subjective criteria like bleeding, skin colour, temperature, and pressure response.

Open Degloving:

Open degloving injuries are easier to diagnose than closed degloving injuries because the muscle and bone may be exposed where the skin has been torn away. These open wounds, where the skin is degloved, can be closely evaluated visually, often under anaesthesia.

Closed Degloving Injuries:

In Closed Degloving Injuries, it may not be immediately obvious that the top layer of skin has degloved from the deeper tissue layers. The affected area may appear swollen or bruised. 

If a Closed Degloving Injury is suspected, the physician may use needle aspiration to check for accumulated blood and fluid. Ultrasound, CT, and MRI tests may also be required to diagnose the extent of the Degloved Injury.

How is a Degloved Face or Degloving Injury Treated?  

Treatment for a Degloving Injury depends on what kind it is, how severe it is, and where it is on the body. These injuries often come with other serious injuries like broken bones that need quick treatment. Also, not all emergency centres can handle complex skin repairs because they require special skills.

1) Open Degloving Injuries 

The treatment for Open Degloving Injuries varies based on how bad the injury is and what resources the hospital has. Not every emergency room can do complex skin repairs, so you might need to go to a trauma centre that can offer more advanced care. Treatment options might include:

a) Reattaching the skin 

b) Using skin from other parts of your body for skin grafts 

c) Reattaching a finger or toe 

d) Amputation 

e) These treatments often need several surgeries. You might have to stay in the hospital for days or weeks and might need physical therapy to help you use the injured part again. Sometimes, a small Degloving Injury might just need thorough cleaning and bandaging. 

2) Closed Degloving Injuries 

Treatment for closed Degloving Injuries also varies by the injury's severity. For minor cases, you might just need compression bandages, physical therapy, and rest. For more serious cases, treatments might include: 

a) Draining any fluid that has built up 

b) Removing dead tissue 

c) Sclerotherapy is a procedure in which medication is injected into your blood vessels to make them shrink. 

Challenges Encountered in Treating Degloved Face and Degloving Injuries  

If you have a Degloving Injury, you could expect various long-term effects depending on how serious your injury is. You’ll likely have a scar or some trace of your injury. You may face a long healing process that requires physical therapy and rehabilitation, plus regular aftercare from your doctor. You may even lose the function of the body part you injured.  

Early treatment is important for Degloving Injuries. But even with that, you can still have complications. Some long-term effects of Degloving Injuries include:  

a) Infection  

b) Compartment syndrome (painful pressure buildup in your muscles)  

c) Osteomyelitis (infection of your bone)   

d) Lymphedema (buildup of lymph fluid under your skin)  

e) Contracture (shortening and hardening of your muscles)  

f) Nerve damage  

g) Death  

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Conclusion  

Degloving Injuries are serious and sometimes fatal. Early treatment is key to preventing infections. Treatment usually needs an extended stay at the hospital and several surgeries, followed by several months of physical therapy. We hope this blog has helped you get a clear idea about Degloved Face.  

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