Molly’s parents were able to remove the strand of hair in time, using a magnifying glass and tweezers.
“This picture was taken about 45 minutes after the hair was removed. Unfortunately, the hair managed to cut all the way through Molly’s skin, completely around her toe, but it could have been worse had it gone much longer untreated, or if the hair wasn’t accessible,” Walker wrote.
Walker later told TODAY.com that the hair tourniquet was something he'd never heard about.
“The hair tourniquet syndrome wasn’t anything I ever heard about,” he said. “When we found it was pretty stressful because any time your kid is hurt it’s stressful; you feel helpless. I’m lucky enough to have a wife who is an awesome nurse who was able to remove the hair in minutes.”
According to TODAY, Dr. Debi Gilboa says that a hair tourniquet happens because babies tend to grab at parents’ hair before placing it in a sock or diapers.
“If you feel like your child is behaving in a way that’s unusual, pay attention to it. You’re usually right,” Gilboa said. “A hair tourniquet is a great thing to check for and it’s not hard to spot. There’s not really any way to prevent it, but they’re not that hard to remove. Use something like a bobby pin, so it’s thin and not sharp, slide it between the hair and the skin and it pops right off. If you feel uncomfortable call your doctor.”
(H/T: IJReview)
