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It is really just a bb not a 45 bullet. The body will work around it. Over counter pain meds should be all he needs. ER staff does work. You just do not see it.
They even have examples of that on those Animal Planet veterinarian hospital shows when animals get shot by horrible humans.
If he wants it out he has the option to see a surgeon for a second opinion. They can tell him if slicing into muscle and stuff is worth it compared to having it heal over naturally.
I would be interested in what my son was doing out "late last night" with a BB gun? There is nothing wrong with young adults target practicing in the back yard and learning how to safely use weapons. Of course they should have somebody to train them. Then the first rule is to never point any weapon at anything other than a 'safe' target - that goes for loaded or unloaded. Your son never should have been out at night shooting when he could not see. I would want to know where he was shooting and what he was shooting.
How old is your son? Have you interrogated him? Perhaps you anger is misdirected?
She said he was 20, and was in the woods, so I'd imagine maybe hunting birds. Don't know where OP is but it's dove season here. It doesn't sound like he was up to anything nefarious.
She said he was 20, and was in the woods, so I'd imagine maybe hunting birds. Don't know where OP is but it's dove season here. It doesn't sound like he was up to anything nefarious.
Thanks---yes, he's 20, technically an adult, who doesn't answer to us. He was with friends and they were driving. They didn't want to come home right away and he was at their mercy. I asked why he didn't call us, he gave some vague non-answer. I suspect he didn't want us to know where he was. Yes, I am quite angry at him, but accidents do happen. If you get through life without a single accident, well, more power to you!
I just don't think they did all they could/should have at the ER. At least given him a referral to someone to evaluate it for removal later.
She said he was 20, and was in the woods, so I'd imagine maybe hunting birds. Don't know where OP is but it's dove season here. It doesn't sound like he was up to anything nefarious.
I will bet you that you are not allowed to hunt doves late at night with a BB gun! I believe that some of the doves are protected by federal regulations and that you mush have a migratory bird stamp. The idea of just going out and shooting birds, regardless of species, will get many very stiff fines or maybe even time in jail. Of course if he was hunting birds after dark how he could even find them? You would need a spotlight and that would probably be against the law.
Yes; I overlooked his age originally and it was right in front of me! Maybe I just worry about teenagers or young adults out late at night with BB guns or air rifles because of the trouble they could get in and the damage they could cause.
OP I am sorry that your son is in pain. I just worry as you have worried.
She said he was 20, and was in the woods, so I'd imagine maybe hunting birds.
No season I know of allows shooting at birds before or after daylight, nor shooting with a BB gun; they require using a shotgun.
OP, I'd think with all the run-ins you've had between this kid and your daughter, that you would have seen the kid being in some pain as a lesson learned for a change.
My 20-year old son accidently shot himself in the lower leg with an air soft bb gun. Yep, nice going!
Well. he was out "in the woods" when this happened, late last night, and didn't come home until today to tell us. Ok, so, we took him to the ER. It was a nasty-looking puncture wound, and he was hurting. We did the usual one-hour wait, then, they acted like they didn't know what they were doing, and kept asking him the same questions over and over. Then, they did do a lavage, which was extremely painful for him, and wouldn't give him any type of pain meds. Then they did an x-ray and said it was "too deep", and in such cases they just leave the BB in and the body will eventually encapsulate it.
Just leave it there? Like for the rest of his life? They didn't give directions to follow up for removal, just "see your PCP if it gets worse" They did prescribe antibiotics, with instructions NOT to take unless symptoms of infection began. They also did give a tetanus shot.
I was outraged----just leave the bullet in his leg? Is that typically done? Nothing for pain, and no antibiotics unless infection sets in. Well, we started the antibiotics tonight, and I have some Tylenol 4 I gave him. I intend to take him to a wound-care doctor in another hospital who treated a leg wound I had about a year ago. This is Sunday night, so, of course, nothing can be done until tomorrow, but I just wanted to ask, is this typical treatment?
BTW, the hospital we went to was a Regional Trauma center, level II. We figured they would be the best to treat a gunshot wound, guess we were wrong. Oh, and we do have excellent insurance, so there was no reason not to treat him better
First things first...This is NOT a gunshot wound, cut the theatrics. Its a bb, from an airsoft gun. Yes, its very typical that they leave it in. Think about it...If it never comes out, what's the problem? What's wrong with it getting wrapped in scar tissue?
If you go in there to get it out, you have to make the hole bigger and deeper, because whatever removes the BB is going to be wider than the bb itself (to grab it.) That would be painful to dig in and around the wound channel to fish it out.
As to the pain meds? I'm sure he didn't feel good, but typically they don't reward teenage stupidity with narcotics at the hospital. If this was a trauma center, the airsoft bb was probably a popcorn fart to them. And, I have been a stupid teenager (not with airsoft but with paintball guns) so I get that your son is simply being a 20 year old male.
Don't start the antibiotics unless it gets infected...because if infection sets in and he's developed resistance to them, he's in for a much tougher road.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MaryleeII
So, is this typical, to just leave a bullet inside the leg? I don't feel right about that, it could migrate to who knows where, get into a blood vessel, create a clot, set up a major infection, etc. Didn't they remove bullets on Gunsmoke, etc? Is this modern medicine?
Your comparing a 50 year old TV show set in a time period 150 years ago to modern medicine...And back then you were a lot more likely to die from an infection after a surgery than anything else...Disease and illness killed more civil war soldiers than bullets.
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Maybe I just worry about teenagers or young adults out late at night with BB guns or air rifles because of the trouble they could get in and the damage they could cause.
