MEXICO

Burn Treatment

A burn is damage to the skin’s tissues, usually caused by excessive heat. Recognizing different types of burns and having a basic knowledge of how to treat them can minimize injury and prevent fatalities.

Burning

Heat is the most obvious cause of burn injuries. This can be direct contact with fires, radiators or hot liquids, but also the radiated heat from an extreme source of heat, such as a furnace or open fire. Burns can also be caused by chemicals, electricity, the sun’s rays, friction (rubbing or chafing) or extreme cold.

Burns usually affect the skin, but other important areas of the body can also be injured. For example, the airways and lungs can be damaged as a result of inhaling hot fumes and gases.

Types of Burns

Burns are usually a result of one of the following:

Scalds - Scalds are the most common cause of burns. They occur when skin comes into contact with hot liquids. Scalds with hot oil are generally more severe than with hot water because oil heats to higher temperatures than water, and the thicker liquid may remain on the skin for a longer period of time. Similarly, covered areas of skin can yield severe burns because clothing retains heat, keeping scalding liquid in contact with the skin longer. Even steam can cause a severe scalding injury.

Thermal - Flame and Flash -Flame is the next most common cause of burn injuries. Likely sources include careless smoking, improper use of flammable liquids, auto accidents or clothing ignited by stoves or space heaters. Flash follows closely behind flame with injuries from natural gas explosions, propane and gasoline. Flash flames can cause intense heat over a brief time. Clothing, unless ignited, often protects skin in this type of burn.

Contact - Many burns are caused by contact with hot objects such as metal, plastic, glass and hot coals.

Electrical - Contact with live wires or unprotected electrical outlets can also cause burn injuries. The severity of these types of burns depends on the intensity of the electrical current and the duration of exposure.

Chemical - Most often, chemical burns occur during industrial accidents, but they can also occur in the home with common battery acids, oils and gases. Chemical burns can cause progressive damage until the chemical is inactivated. The severity of this type of burn depends on the kind of chemical, length of exposure and amount of tissue involved.

Ultraviolet - Severe burns can result from overexposure to sun or tanning equipment.

Inhalation Injury - This injury occurs when someone is trapped in an enclosed space with toxic gas or fumes from a fire or chemical leak. These gases can produce a chemical burn causing an inflammatory response to a person's respiratory system. Initially, inhalation injuries may be masked by other outer burns. However, damage may appear within two to 48 hours after a burn injury.

Types of burn

The severity of a burn depends on how deeply it has affected the tissue. There are three categories of burn: referred to as first, second and third-degree burns.

First-degree burn

Previously referred to as a first-degree burn, a superficial burn is limited to the epidermis. It is characterized by heat, pain, moistening and reddening of the burned surface, but rarely shows blistering or charring of tissue. Superficial burns often heal in three to seven days and seldom scar. Typical superficial burns include sunburn and minor scalds.

Second-degree burn

Sometimes referred to as partial thickness burns, first-degree burns are characterized as either "superficial" or "deep." Both types penetrate deeper than a first-degree burn and destroy the epidermal layers, extending into the dermis layer. They can cause damage to sweat glands and hair follicles and are extremely painful, often with intense swelling.

Skin that has incurred a superficial second-degree burn is moist, red and weepy. Most superficial second-degree burns heal in 10 to 21 days, but leave a change in skin color and pigmentation. A deep second-degree burn can be ivory or pearly white in color and may require a process known as debridement and additional skin grafting treatments.

Cross-section of skin

Third-degree burn

A third-degree burn, also known as a full thickness burn, destroys all the epidermal and dermal skin layers. The tissue damage extends below hair follicles and sweat glands to subcutaneous (fat) tissue. With this degree of burn, the skin becomes charred and leathery and often appears depressed relative to surrounding tissue. The skin can be bright red, waxy white, tan or brown; there are no blisters; and third degree burns may cause massive swelling. Perhaps surprisingly, third degree burns are usually not painful because the injury has destroyed nerve endings. Skin grafting or other replacement options are required for treatment of a third degree burn.

When a burn injury is deep enough to involve muscle, bone, tendon and/or ligament, it is sometimes classified as a fourth degree burn. These burns are often life threatening and may require amputation.

Other burn sites

Burns to the face, singeing of eyebrows or nasal hair and black deposits in the mouth or sputum indicate that the airways may be burnt and immediate medical attention should be sought.

NOTE: Microcyn® does not have U.S. FDA clearance for claims other than to moisten, lubricate, cleanse and debride wounds.

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