Because certainly there are people out there who get suspicious-looking bruises for totally innocuous reasons.

t looks around, suspiciously

Yeah, I am that person.

And from family and people who really do know me well, I can understand them not asking. But my doctor has never asked question #1 when I came in looking like someone took a baseball bat to my back and legs (ftr, twisted my ankle at a wedding reception and tumbled down the stairs).

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Yeah, I am that person.

Me, too. I got MAJOR third-degree from my doctor a few years back because I was washing the tub and a shampoo bottle fell on my eye, giving me a handy-dandy shiner.

It did. Honest. I am that sort of person. I constantly have thigh and buttock bruises from walking into door handles.

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Cripes, the number of bruises on my hips from thinking they're the size they were when I was 20? I can't walk by any type of projecting piece of architecture without carrying semi-permanent reminders.

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Yep...

The futon frame in my office that has banged up my thigh more times than I can count is a classic bruise for me...

Between bruising easily and being as clumsy as a puppy on linoleum? I am actually disturbed that a doctor hasn't at least asked me if there is anything going on.

"Ouch... Now that's going to leave a mark!"

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Because certainly there are people out there who get suspicious-looking bruises for totally innocuous reasons.

Not only am I that person, I help make other people that person too.

Signed,
Split Lip Is Only Scar Tissue Now.

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Cripes, the number of bruises on my hips from thinking they're the size they were when I was 20? I can't walk by any type of projecting piece of architecture without carrying semi-permanent reminders.

There was (and still is, but I no longer live there) a telephone table in the hallway leading to my old bedroom in the house where I grew up. It made the hallway slightly too narrow for someone stumbling in from the computer at three in the morning. It had sharp, pokey edges. I had frequent, large bruises.

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So, it's a serious question. How do they tell? I mean, I'm sure they're supposed to look for behavioral clues as well, and all that. Of course, then it comes down to being able to read people -- do doctors get a lot of training in that?

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In my case, I really don't think my doctor would ever notice such things or ask any questions. Which is really tragic.

When I have gone in, he hasn't even asked what happened. I just get all nervous in doctor's offices which can lead to getting chatty.

I hope he is the exception and not the rule.

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Also, I woiuld think bruises on hips and legs are pretty common from klutziness (they sure are with me) and uncommon for abuse--someone is more like to hit you in the face from anger than on the hip or the back of the leg.

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I did a quick googling on injury patterns.

Kids:

• Bruises that result from abuse tend to be larger; are more common on the face, back, abdomen, arms, buttocks, ears and hands -- and often occur in clusters
• Bruises on uncommonly injured body surfaces
• Blunt-instrument marks or burns
• Human hand marks or bite marks
• Multiple injuries at different stages of healing
• Circumferential immersion burns
• Unexplained retinal hemorrhages
• Children seldom bruise their buttocks in accidental falls.
• Bruises on the buttocks are in the primary target zone for nonaccidental injury.

Elderly:

• Sprains, dislocations, fractures, or broken bones
• Burns from cigarettes, appliances, or hot water
• Abrasions on arms, legs, or torso that resemble rope or strap marks
• Internal injuries evidenced by pain, difficulty with normal functioning of organs, and bleeding from body orifices

Bruises. The following types of bruises are rarely accidental:

• Bilateral bruising to the arms (may indicate that the person has been shaken, grabbed, or restrained)
• Bilateral bruising of the inner thighs (may indicate sexual abuse)
• "Wrap around" bruises that encircle an older person's arms, legs, or torso (may indicate that the person has been physically restrained)
• Multicolored bruises (indicating that they were sustained over time)
• Injuries healing through "secondary intention" (indicating that they did not receive appropriate care)
• Signs of traumatic hair and tooth loss

Domestic violence:

• Chronic pain and /or areas of tenderness especially at the extremities
• Bruises, welts, edema or scars, particularly in the genital and anal areas and the breasts
• Swelling of eyes
• Split lip
• Ubconjunctival hemorrhage
• Signs of choking on throat
• Intra-abdominal injury
• Shoulder dislocation

Which is to say, sadly, there are a million ways to do it. I don't think (and that's why I started googling) that it's all about the face.

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