Contusion (Bruise)
Definition
Blunt-force trauma that ruptures small vessels beneath an intact skin surface. Blood collects in the tissue. Location, size, and shape can indicate the object involved; site and pattern help distinguish accidental from inflicted injury.
- Skin integrity
- Skin remains intact; blood collects in tissue beneath the surface
- Primary cause
- Rupture of small blood vessels from blunt-force trauma
- Age estimation range
- 1 to 2 weeks based on color progression
Common questions
What is a contusion?+
A contusion is blood that leaks from ruptured small vessels under the skin without breaking the skin itself. You can see the bruising through the intact skin. It results from blunt-force trauma that damages the tiny capillaries beneath the surface.
How can a contusion help identify the injury?+
The location, size, and shape of a contusion can show what object caused the injury. The site and pattern of bruising help distinguish whether an injury was accidental or inflicted, making contusions valuable for injury investigation and reconstruction.
How long does it take to estimate the age of a contusion?+
Age can be estimated from color change over 1 to 2 weeks. As the bruise heals, the color shifts through predictable stages, allowing investigators to estimate roughly when the injury occurred during that window.
Related terms
- Abrasion
- A wound where friction or tangential force removes the superficial layers of skin without penetrating the full thickness. Abrasions preserve the direction...
- Incised Wound
- A wound produced by a sharp-edged implement. Margins are clean, without contusion or bridging. Depth is less than length in a classic...
- Laceration
- A wound torn by blunt or shearing force, characterised by ragged, contused margins and tissue bridges crossing the wound depths. The distinction...
- Stab (Punctured) Wound
- Wound produced by a pointed weapon where depth is greater than length on the skin; gives the best clue to weapon dimensions.
- Abraded Collar
- 1 to 3 mm rim of grazed skin around a firearm entry wound caused by the bullet stretching and scraping the skin...
- Avulsion
- Tearing away of tissue, leaving a flap or a gap. Avulsions convey information about the direction of force because tissue pulls away...
- Chop Wound
- Combined incised and lacerated injury from a heavy edged weapon (axe, kulhari), often involving underlying bone.
- Defence Wound
- Injury sustained while warding off an attack, typically incised or stab wounds on the palms, fingers, ulnar borders of forearms or back...
- Grievous Hurt
- Hurt falling within any of the eight clauses of BNS 2023 Section 116 (emasculation, vision loss, hearing loss, member or joint deprivation,...
- Injury
- Any harm whatever illegally caused to a person in body, mind, reputation or property (BNS 2023 Section 2(14), carrying forward IPC Section...
- Patterned Injury
- A wound whose shape reflects the object that caused it, such as a bite leaving individual tooth impressions, a cord leaving parallel...
- Simple Hurt
- Any hurt that does not fall within the eight clauses of grievous hurt under BNS 2023 Section 116; punishable under Section 115.
Explained in these topics
- Injuries and Wounds: Types, Medicolegal Importance and Gunshot WoundsExtravasation of blood into subcutaneous tissue from ruptured capillaries with the skin intact; age estimated from colour change over 1 to 2 weeks.
- Mechanical Injuries: Abrasions, Bruises, Incised and Stab WoundsExtravasation of blood from ruptured vessels into surrounding tissue without breach of skin. Visible through intact skin.
- Wound Terminology and Injury DocumentationBlunt-force trauma that ruptures small vessels beneath an intact skin surface. Blood collects in the tissue. Location, size, and shape can indicate the object...