Bruises are purple or bluish marks on the skin which appear after you bang into something or suffer from an injury. Bruises appear due to breakage of the blood capillaries below the soft skin. The clotted blood under the skin appears as a bruise. They change the colour as they heal.

The following reasons are responsible for having a bruise: minor injuries due to falling or bumping into objects; use of blood-thinning medicines; soft and thinner skin in old age; bleeding disorders; Vitamin B, C and K deficiency; a fight or abuse; and blood cancer (leukaemia).

Bruises occur due to injuries. The soft skin and tissue where the bruise appears becomes tender and swollen due to the injury. There is trauma at the site, so bruises are painful. The bone bruise is very severe and painful and lasts longer. In this condition the blood vessels break and blood flows to nearby muscles and organs.

The treatment of the bruises usually depends on the cause. You may treat bruises in the following ways: apply an ice pack for 15 minutes at least for the first two days; take rest to reduce the swelling; after two days begin using the heat pack; use a painkiller to relieve the pain; and if the bruises take a longer time to heal or if there is a fracture then consult a doctor.

You may take the following care at home to heal bruises quickly: stop the bleeding at the site by using a cold compress (cloth soaked in cold water) or ice pack; at home, you may wrap a packet of frozen vegetables in a towel to make an ice pack; and use over the counter painkillers.