The New York Womans

It may cause amputation. What is the "hair tond" that affects the limbs of infants?

Parents go to great lengths to protect their children and ensure their safety, trying to provide everything they need to care for their little ones throughout the day and ensure their smooth growth and development.

But what many people don't know is that there are health risks that can affect children from common things they encounter almost daily, such as hair. A phenomenon called "hair band" can threaten their small limbs with swelling, infection, or even amputation if not addressed in a timely manner.

What is a "hair band"?

A hair tourniquet occurs when a strand of hair, or just a single long hair, or in some cases a thin, delicate strand, wraps around part of an infant's body, cutting off circulation.

This hair tourniquet can damage nerves and skin tissue and stop the function of the affected part of the body if not noticed in time.

Hair lice can affect the fingers of infants, especially as they develop the ability to crawl, or they can infect the toes, genitals, or other extremities that are exposed to dirt, hair, thread, and other fine debris that sometimes covers home furnishings and carpets.

Hair tourniquets usually affect young infants up to about one and a half years old, because their fingers are usually so small at this stage that hair can wrap around them without being noticed.

Because new mothers lose some of their hair in their first year after giving birth, the baby's risk of developing hair loss increases, even if he or she is unable to crawl.

This can happen through the child's natural, daily contact with clothing, bedding, and blankets, or even through hugging by his parents, relatives, and friends.

It is not known why hair or thread wraps itself so tightly around a child's limbs, but one possible explanation is that repeated movement of a body part in a confined space—such as the toes in pajamas—causes the hair to wrap so tightly.

One of the risks of the problem is that it may persist until it becomes serious. It may be difficult to see the hair because once it is cut or embedded in the skin, the surrounding skin can grow over the wound, causing serious complications.

Symptoms of child infection

When hair or thread becomes tightly wrapped around your child's affected limb, it can cause pain and swelling. In severe cases, this can impede blood flow to your child's limbs.

If the problem is not recognized early, the thread or hair is not removed, and proper treatment is not provided to restore normal blood flow to the finger, the child may be exposed to serious complications such as tissue death or bone erosion, which may require amputation of the finger.

Hair bands are often very painful, so the baby is likely to cry a lot. Therefore, the real reason for your baby's constant crying should not be ignored and all parts of his body should be checked to ensure that they are normal.

If your baby is crying or appears to be in pain, and you've tried the traditional routine of changing, feeding, and putting the baby to sleep without success, it's a good idea to check his entire body for a possible hair tourniquet.

Traditional signs and symptoms of infection include:

Excessive crying in a child without any apparent reason.
Note a fine, sunken line on one of the child's limbs.
Redness or discoloration of the fingers, toes, tongue, or genitals in male children.
Mild, moderate, or severe swelling in one of these extremes.
A hair tourniquet can also cause a complication called ischemia, which is a lack of blood flow to the affected area and causes it to change color compared to the rest of the body.

Treatment and management methods

If you see the above symptoms, but the swelling in the affected limb does not worsen, you can try to carefully loosen or cut the thread or hair.

If the swelling is severe, do not attempt to remove or trim the hair or thread yourself, as this may worsen the problem. Instead, visit the nearest doctor or specialized clinic.

In this case, the doctor will examine your child under good lighting. If the hair is visible, it will be removed using medical scissors and tweezers.

The doctor may use a hair removal agent to dissolve the strand if the hair is stubborn and cannot be easily removed from your child's finger.

In some severe cases, surgery under general anesthesia may be necessary if the hair is stuck too deeply and the skin has healed over the wound that caused it.

In general, this problem can be prevented simply by paying special attention to your child's extremities and examining them under bright lighting regularly. Be sure to remove any hair or thread that may be stuck to the child's body before it becomes tightly wrapped around a limb due to friction and constant movement.