Burns are a specific type of soft tissue injury. They occur when the body receives more energy (heat, chemical or electrical) than it can absorb without injury.
A severe burn can be life threatening and requires immediate medical attention. The severity of the burn depends on the temperature of the medium that caused and duration of exposure. They are primarily skin lesions, but sometimes affects other organs like lungs, heart, kidneys, etc.
The severity of burns is determined by five factors:
Depth of burn: 1st, 2nd and 3rd grade.
Extent of burn: Percentage of body area affected.
Condition critical regions: Hands, feet, face and genitals.
Patient age: Under 2 years old or very old.
Overall health of the individual.
Causes. What is produced and how is it produced?
Physical agents
Burns and his Treatment
Solid hot irons, stoves.
Boiling liquids: water, oil, coffee, etc..
Cold: Exposure to extremely low temperatures, local ice unprotected intermediate cooling sprays misused.
Fire, flames directly or solid waste.
Chemical
Gasoline and oil in general.
Acids: hydrochloric, sulfuric etc.
Alkali: Caustic soda, lime or carbide.
Electrical Agents
Electric shocks at different voltages: Cables, electrical appliances, plugs without protection, lightning.
Radioactive agents: solar rays, X rays, infrared radiation.
Burns may be first, second or third degree according to the layers of skin and depth of the damaged tissues.
Is considered first-degree burn that hurts the most superficial layer of the skin. The burn is usually caused by excessive exposure to sunlight. Symptoms include skin redness or erythema, dry skin, intense burning pain, swelling and tenderness discrete affected area.
The second-degree burns are those in which the superficial and intermediate layers of skin are injured. The characteristic symptom is the appearance of blisters. There is intense pain and swelling of the inflamed area.
In third-degree burns are affected all layers of the skin and underlying tissues such as muscles, nerves, tendons and blood vessels may reach the bone. This type of burn is caused by prolonged contact with heat, electricity or caustic elements. The appearance of the skin is stiff in these cases, completely dry and there is pain due to the destruction of the nerve endings. It always requires medical attention early, but the injury is not very extensive.
Apart from this classification are considered serious burns all those who:
Make breathing difficult.
Those located in the head, neck, hands, feet or genitals.
Those that affect children under 2 years or older.
All injuries that include third grade.
Those that affect more than 15% body surface area.
Those that are associated with major trauma.
Any severe burn can be fatal, this requires medical attention as soon as possible.
Treatment
First we have to reassure the victim and her family. Assess the type and severity of burn. You have to cool the burned area for several minutes. It can be done by applying a saline solution or cold water (not ice) on the injury. Do not use ice to cool the burned area or apply creams or ointments because they may interfere with subsequent measurement and medical treatment. Cover the burned area with a bandage or a moist saline solution or cold water clean and secure with a bandage to prevent contamination of the injury.
If they occur in hands or feet, put gauze between the fingers before putting the band. If a victim is conscious and complained of pain is an analgesic and plenty of fluids (oral rehydration salts if possible, to replace losses of water and electrolytes). In any case the patient was transferred to a hospital. When the burns are serious, the victim is unconscious, not breathing and no pulse is to start CPR immediately and seek urgent medical help.
Already at the medical center will be held the general treatment with analgesia and sedation if necessary, referral to an intravenous intake of fluids and electrolytes needed and local treatment of burn consisting of washing, shaving areas hair (with hair), dried with sterile dressings and surgical resection of necrotic tissue and blisters. Once this is decided what type of treatment applied, cure or occlusive exposed.
During the first 72 hours is necessary to monitor vital signs (pulse, blood pressure, temperature, respiratory function), water balance (revenues of fluids and urine output) and perform some additional tests such as hematocrit (red blood cells), protein (protein ), electrolytes (ions), chest radiograph and electrocardiogram.
Prognosis and complications
The prognosis of burns depends on the location and degree of the same, the extent of body surface affected and the existence of aggravating factors such as age, associated injuries and comorbid diseases such as diabetes, kidney failure, AIDS or other immunosuppressive diseases (which reduce the defenses). The most common complication of burns are localized or generalized infection.
burn seriousness depends on type or temperatura of the mediium, burns prognosis, complications caused by burns of face, gasoline skin burns, ice on gasoline skin burns, medical treatment for sulfuric acid hand & feet burn, physical agent for burn on face, type of physical agent in burns of face and neckTags: Burns, Burns's treatments, skin, Skin Care, Skin Problems
, burn seriousness depends on type or temperatura of the mediium, burns prognosis, complications caused by burns of face, gasoline skin burns, ice on gasoline skin burns, medical treatment for sulfuric acid hand & feet burn, physical agent for burn on face, type of physical agent in burns of face and neck
