Deep Cuts & Stitches
At After Hour Pediatrics, we care for all kinds of skin injuries. While you wait for a visit, cover the wound with a clean cloth or tissue. If bleeding continues, apply more tissue or cloth on top.
Common Questions about deep cuts
- The cut is large or more than 1/4 inch deep
- Your child received an animal bite
- An object is lodged in the wound – do not remove it
- The object causing the injury was rusty
- Your child has not had a tetanus shot in the last 5 year
Yes. Most of our doctors do stitches on the scalp, chin, arms and legs. Unsure if your child needs stitches? Swing by our clinic, let us take a quick look at the wound, and we can let you know if After Hour Pediatrics or the Emergency Room can provide the best care.
At After Hour Pediatrics, we can repair lacerations with stitches, glue or staples, depending on the location and depth of the cut.
We can evaluate your child in the car or clinic to determine if he needs emergency care. Sometimes we need to clean a wound first to see how deep it goes. Our providers are skilled at using dermabond “glue” for small cuts and can stitch up deeper cuts.
No. For most lacerations, we apply a special topical anesthetic and allow it to work for 15 minutes, then we inject with lidocaine to numb the area. If you can bring along an i-pad or tablet with the child’s favorite video, that will help a lot!
Keep clean and dry until the glue falls off, usually in 3 to 7 days. Do not use ointment as it may loosen the bond.
Try your best to keep the wound clean and dry until they are removed. Wash once or twice a day then cover with vaseline. We don’t recommend antibiotic ointment unless it was prescribed by your doctor.
Insect Bites, Dog & Cat Bites, Human Bites
Insect bites
Fortunately, most insect bites are harmless, though they can be itchy, painful and annoying. Allergic reactions to insect bites can cause redness, warmth and itching, while infected insect bites can cause redness, warmth and pain. Not sure if the bites are infected or allergy triggered? Come on by to have our team look at your bites to come up with a good plan for your child.
Dog bites
Did you know that most dog bites are caused by our own pets? Yes, it’s true. Toddlers especially like to pull the tails or our four-legged pals, triggering a quick, instinctive bite from our pets who are generally loving and tolerant. Dog bites need to be examined and thoroughly cleansed. Puncture wounds often need antibiotic treatment.
Cat bites
Cat bites and scratches tend to be less severe than dog bites, but they can be more dangerous since cats carry more invasive germs in their mouths than dogs. And their puncture wounds can be very small, allowing for the skin to get easily infected.
Human Bites
While human teeth are not as sharp as dog or cat teeth, their bites can readily cause infection from the bacteria in the mouth.
Wash all bites right away with soap and water.
We are a family-friendly children’s urgent care and minor emergency center in downtown San Mateo
For over 20 years, we have provided pediatric urgent medical care to babies, children and young adults from San Mateo, Burlingame, Millbrae, San Bruno, San Carlos, Belmont, Redwood City, and Foster City. The clinic is staffed by Board Certified pediatricians, is easy to find, and has parking right outside the door.
Our clinic is open for Urgent Care after hours when your child’s doctor is unavailable. We recommend you make an appointment so we can prepare for your arrival, please fill out all the forms and upload your insurance information. We have a limited number of walk-in spots each night.
Questions & Answers
A: We treat Urgent Care patients from birth to age 26. If we are very busy, we give younger children priority and may ask the young adult to be seen in Adult Urgent Care.
A: You should come to After Hour Pediatrics if your child requires urgent care when your pediatrician or primary care physician’s office is closed. We are a convenient and affordable alternative to the Emergency Room. If the injury or illness is life-threatening, you should go to the nearest hospital.
We are open 365 days a year, Monday-Friday 5pm -10pm and Weekends/Holidays 10am-10pm.
If you are in doubt about whether to come and visit us please call us at 650-579-6581
A: The typical visit requires 30 -60 minutes depending on the services you need. If you need lab tests, breathing treatments or a procedure performed, you may be in the office for longer. During surge of illnesses or patients with emergencies, wait times can be longer.
For Urgent Care, you can “Save a Spot” or drop in. We see walk in patients in the order that they arrive with exceptions for critically ill children or those at high-risk. We do our best to see “Saved Spots” on time, and always leave openings for walk in patients.
- We believe sick or injured children should be seen by a pediatrician. Other urgent care facilities may have pediatric rooms or areas designated for children, but they are not staffed with clinicians who have specialized training in pediatrics.
- We are ideally located in downtown San Mateo, 10 minutes from San Francisco airport.
- We offer free parking right outside our front door.
- We are child friendly, caring, compassionate and gentle.
- We will work with your child’s primary physician, informing them about your visit and ensuring they are fully briefed about your child’s medical situation as soon as possible.
- We are independently run so you can talk to us about financial pressures. We might be able to help.