How much bruising is normal on a toddler?

[o_mom]

Is this normal? DS1 always has bruises on his legs. Sometimes in other places, but his shins and knees are always banged up. Right now he has 10-12 bruises most quarter sized or smaller, but it just seems like alot. He doesn't seem to have trouble stopping bleeding, but we haven't haven't had any really bad cuts either - mainly bloody lips from falling or running into his brother or skinned knees. When I see other kids his age, they don't seem to have that many bruises. He could just be clumsy, I guess :-).

His three year checkup isn't until Oct. and I'll ask the Dr. then, but just wondering if this is something to be worried about.

[buddyleebaby]

My dd is much younger, but she always has a variety of bruises or scrapes, because, well, she is a rough and tumble girl.
At least we are past the stage where she kept hitting her head all the time. Now they are mostly on her knees...

[lisams]

Emma is almost 4 and I just called her over to count her bruises - 7 all together. A few big ones on her knees and several small ones on her shins.

I remember asking her ped about this, and he said that it's normal and as long as they are usually at or below the knee. As a matter of fact he said he worries when he sees a kiddo with no bruises as it's a sign of inactivity. That was enough reassurance for me!

[pampamz]

My 4yo DS has never been much of a bruiser, but his cousin (girl!) who is the same age has been a bruiser since she started toddling.

She ALWAYS has atleast several quarter sized bruises going on her knees/shins, and sometimes many more. I would suggest you do mention it to your doc if you are concerned, but rest assured their are others out there just like yours!

HTH.

[chlobo]

I think that as long as the bruises are healing and not getting worse then there isn't a problem. I remember when I was Mt. Biking (obviously he's too young) I had so many bruises that when I went to my annual exam they asked if BF abused me (well, not in so many words).

However, if you want reassurance that its ok to wait until October you should give your doctor's office a call and speak to the triage nurse. She can probably advise you better than us.

[californiagirl]

Oh good -- I was just going to ask a similar question. My DD has both knees skinned at the moment (she did different places on one knee twice, then the other) and daycare thinks it's her shoes. I think she's a very active kid who does this in every pair of shoes she's ever owned and barefoot, and I don't think "rubber soles" instead of Tevas (which fit perfectly right now!) is going to make a difference. Tevas ARE rubber soles from my point of view!

Anyway, I was going to ask if other active 2.5 year olds also fall often. She's not bad at gross motor skills (she runs, jumps with both feet off the ground, runs serpentines around cones) and she's had no major injuries. But she's always got a bruise or a scrape, usually her knees or elbows.

[elliput]

Growing up my legs were almost consistantly bruised. I would look like a banged up pear sometimes. :-) It is just how I am. I bruise easily, and usually don't know how or when I got it.

[cbm]

It better be normal because over here there are plenty of bruises all the time. We went to the doctor yesterday and he didn't say anything about DS' bruises. I am sure he would have commented if he thought they were weird.
Ask your ped anyway and get your mind at ease.

Claudia
DS 12/18/04

[drsweetie]

We have the book "A Guide to Your Child's Symptoms" by the American Academy of Pediatrics and it addresses this issue specifically. In a section about "bruising", it says that if your child has several bruises, mostly on the shins, then "this is a healthy, active child". So it sounds like everything's fine.

Ellen

[kaylinsmommy2]

I don't know if it's normal or not, but DD has lots of bruises and skinned knees. Every time I go to pick her up at daycare, all the kids like to show me their bandaids/owies/knees. They all have scabs/bruises on their knees.

I also see the kids fall down a lot. :) It could be that DD is clumsy (I am for sure) but it seems really normal, too - they trip over their own feet, misjudge a turn, slip on the sand, bump into another child, etc.

Caroline
mommy to Kaylin 6/5/04

http://tickers.baby-gaga.com/t/bunbunadb20040605_-9_Kaylin+is+now.png[/img][/url]

and one on the way, due 2/26/07

[wendmatt]

I remember reading somewhere that a toddler has an average of 13 bruises at any one time!

[sarahsthreads]

Well, DD is a year younger, but she's always got bruises on her shins. A couple on the backs of her thighs, too, from falling onto her backside right onto a toy. She has so many at the moment that my (college-aged) brother asked me recently why Carrie had "spots" all over her legs. I guess because they were all roughly the same size and color he thought she had some sort of weird rash. :D

I'm sure most of them are from falling but I also think some of them are from climbing: whenever DD climbs onto a piece of hard furniture, like a kitchen chair, she's got all her weight on her shins on the edge of the chair as she's getting up.

Anyway, I wouldn't worry, and I worry about *everything*, but if you're worried, call the nurses at the pediatrician's office. That's what they're there for!

Sarah :)

[o_mom]

It sounds like he is pretty normal! Almost all the bruises are knees or below with just one on his hip and one on an elbow. They just seem to always be there (not the exact same spot, but he always has some) which is why I wondered. He is a pretty cautious child so it didn't seem like he was doing enough to get bruised, but he probably just doesn't notice them. I do bruise easily, too, but have never been diagnosed with anything or had bleeding problems. I'll bring it up with the doctor, but I'm OK with waiting unless they get really bad or something changes.

I think my friends must all have freak children that don't bruise!

[hez]

Just a little more support for you! Payton's bruised from just above his knees to his ankles. No where else really, but those shins are banged up pretty well all the time. He's climbing, banging in to things and whatnot, and it seems to be just the normal course of toddlerhood.

[s7714]

I'm the same way, and my older DD has taken after me as well. Her legs are usually covered in little bruises.

Jennifer
Mommy to
Miss Pure Energy 3/03
Miss Antsy-Pants 6/05

Calling fellow BBB SoCal moms...we'd love to meet you!
(100 posts & BBB member for 3 months req'd)
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/babybargainssocal/

[crl]

Well, my really active 3yo doesn't have very many brusies and has only skinned his knee badly enough to need a band-aid once! His preschool teacher (and others) actually commented to me that he never seems to fall much.

But he did have a truly horrendous bruise on his hip that seemed to be re-occurring or not healing. I figured out that he was ramming into things with the tricycle at school and the handlebar was causing the bruise.

In the interim, I called the ped's office and the nurse was very clear that if it was just one place not to worry as a bleeding disorder would show up in many, many bad bruises ALL OVER.

HTH,

[Marisa6826]

Sophie is a mass of bruises and her sister isn't far behind. I think it's one of those rights of passages of childhood.

I would be more concerned if they were appearing on weird places - his back, belly, face, etc. I think legs and feet are pretty par for the course.

-m

[brittone2]

Just add us to the list as well. DS is 2.5 and his shins are very bruised right now. THe other day alone I think he fell on the hardwood floor about 3 different times. Must have been a tipsy kinda day for him ;)