No matter how hard people try to make their domestic environment safe, accidents still happen. Among the common household injuries are bruises, trips and falls, cuts, and sprains. Another serious injury that claims life if not well managed is burns.
Of course, there are minor burns that would cause minimal skin damage. However, some burns would be severe, painful, and scary, causing severe damage to the skin. No matter the degree of the burn, you can always help reduce the burn damage and reduce pain. Also, limit your risk of infection and facilitate the healing process. All of which you can effectively manage if you have the best first aid techniques.
This article discusses some of the easiest ways to help your manage high burn degrees. But first, let’s’ find out more about the kinds of burns and their causes.
Types of Burns
Burns are categorized into three groups, first, second and third-degree burns.
First-Degree Burns
Also known as superficial burns- these burns cause minimal skin damage. Usually, they last for 7-10 days without causing scars and disappear once the skin heals or is shed. They are characterized by the painful inflammation of the skin. Here are some of the signs and symptoms of first-degree burns:
- Mild swelling
- Redness of the affected area
- The skin would be tender to touch
- Dry and peeling skin as the burn heals
You can easily manage these burns through home care such as:
- Soaking the wound in water for some minutes
- Taking antibiotics and ointment to protect the affected area
- Painkillers to help relieve pain
- Applying anesthetic or cream to help soothe the burn
Second-Degree Burns
Burns under this category are more profound and more severe than the first-degree ones as they extend beyond the first and top layers of the skin.
In addition to the swelling or inflammation, redness, and pain, blistering of the skin also becomes extremely sore and red. The blisters would pop open in some cases, resulting in a weeping appearance.
Managing the second-degree burns requires keeping the affected area as clean as possible and bandaging to prevent further infection. You can also take OTC medication or apply antibiotic cream to help manage any mild second-degree burns or blisters.
Third-Degree Burns
Besides, fourth-degree burns are more severe and may present severe complications than the first and second degrees. These burns extend to every layer of the skin and damage the nerve.
Third-degree burns exhibit the following signs and symptoms exhibits;
- Un-developing blisters
- Leather-raised texture
- Char, waxy and white color or dark brown color the affected areas
Complications of the Third-Degree Burns
Patients with this type of burn may experience different complications from infections and shock to heavy blood loss, which often lead to death.
Other complications include:
Tetanus- This can happen for burns of any level. The most common one is sepsis tetanus which is a bacterial infection. Since it affects the nervous system, it may lead to muscles contractions.
Also, severe burns would result in hyperthermia, which is prompted by the massive loss of body heat from the burn and the excessive loss of blood.
Treating the Patient with Third-Degree Burns
These types of burns can be life-threatening, and sometimes they would require surgery so that the wound doesn’t heal with scarring. If the burns go deeper, skin grafting would be applied to fix the skin damage. Grafting involves removing and replacing burnt and damaged tissues with fresh and healthy skin from another part of the body.
Conclusion
Whether first, second, or third-degree, Burns needs adequate treatment to help reduce the pain and reduce the risk of infections. For the deep burns that go deep into the skin, the patient should go for a lifelong assisted treatment like surgery or grafting to help replace the damaged tissues.
