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Burns    See images

Overview | Symptoms | Treatment | Prevention

Alternative names:

Second degree burn; First degree burn; Third degree burn

Definition:

First-degree burns affect the outer layer of the skin, causing pain, redness, and swelling. Second-degree burns affect both the outer and underlying layer of the skin, causing pain, redness, swelling, and blistering. Third-degree burns extend into deeper tissues, causing brown or blackened skin that may be numb.

Considerations

Before giving first aid, consider how extensively burned the victim is and try to determine the depth of the most serious part of the burn. Then, treat the entire burn accordingly. Knowing how the burn occurred is helpful, since different sources cause different types of burns. If in doubt, treat it as a severe burn.

Giving immediate first aid before professional medical help is received may lessen the severity of the burn. Prompt medical attention to serious burns can help prevent scarring, disability, and deformity.

If the burn does not heal normally, get medical advice. For extensive but superficial burns, keep dressings clean and dry, and change them as needed. If signs of infection develop get medical help immediately.

Signs of infection include increased pain, redness, swelling, drainage from the burn, swollen lymph nodes, or red streaks spreading from the burn toward the heart. Make sure the victim is up-to-date on tetanus immunization.

Victims under age 4 or over age 60 have a higher incidence of complications and, consequently, a higher death rate.

Burns on the face, hands, feet, and genitalia are most serious because of possible loss of function.

Victims of fire are at risk for carbon monoxide poisoning and should be tested if they have symptoms such as headache, numbness, weakness, or chest pain.

Causes

• Thermal burns -- the most common type -- are frequently the result of residential fires, automobile accidents, playing with matches, improperly stored gasoline, space heaters, electrical malfunctions, or arson.
• Burns can be caused by dry heat (like fire), wet heat (such as steam or hot liquids), radiation, friction, heated objects, the sun, electricity, or chemicals.
• Airway burns can be caused by inhaling smoke, steam, superheated air, or toxic fumes, often in a poorly ventilated space.
• Other causes include improper handling of firecrackers, scalding accidents, and kitchen accidents (such as a child climbing on top of a stove or grabbing a hot iron).
• Burns in children are sometimes traced to parental abuse.

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