If you burn yourself with boiling water, first aid. Boiling water burn, what to do? Treatment of severe burns

With thermal damage to the skin in everyday life and in the workplace, people encounter quite often. Carelessness, negligence, absent-mindedness lead to burns, the treatment of which largely depends on competently provided first aid. Therefore, it is important to know what to do after a burn with boiling water so that the injury heals quickly and does not leave marks on the skin?

Degrees of burns with boiling water

At the site of contact with the skin of boiling water, acute pain occurs, redness appears, after a few minutes blisters swell.

Blisters filled with a clear liquid hurt, do not allow you to perform the usual movements. After some time, they burst, leaving unpleasant marks on the skin.

Depending on the depth of skin lesions, the consequences will disappear without a trace or remain on the skin, scars, spots, scars, reminding of an unpleasant incident.

Especially dangerous are burns with boiling water for children: children's skin is thin, so the depth of the lesion is greater than that of an adult.

Defeat first degree characterized by a slight reddening of the upper layer of the skin, slight swelling. After a few days, the burn loses its intensity and disappears altogether;

Along with redness and swelling, burns second degree accompanied by the formation of blisters that need to be protected from infection.

• A second-degree burn will take about ten days to heal;
• It affects not only the epithelium and dermis, but also soft tissues located deeper.
• Blisters form on the skin, which, bursting, leave scabs, there is a great danger of suppuration.
• After the burn heals, scars and scars remain;

The most severe lesion with prolonged exposure to hot liquid leads to the development of pain shock and tissue necrosis.

How to help at home

It is very important in the first minutes not to get confused and organize the right help. Before proceeding directly to therapeutic measures, you need to remember:

1. They treat burns of the first and second degree on their own, with a more serious skin lesion, medical assistance is required;
2. The area of ​​the human palm is approximately 1% of the skin area of ​​the entire body. If more than 15% of the body is burned, doctors are needed;
3. The most dangerous are burns to the head and face, since there is a high risk of injury to the eyes and respiratory tract.

Boiled water burns are not rare in case of careless handling of liquids in everyday life, most often the hands and feet suffer.

Before you treat the wound surface, you need to remove clothes from the body and remove hot water.

1. Cool the burn area

The very first remedy for burns with boiling water - cold. If possible, the affected area of ​​the skin is placed under a stream of cool water for 15-10 minutes.

It is important to know that ice water will cause hypothermia, so you need to monitor the condition of the victim.

If the area of ​​the affected area of ​​the skin is large or it is not possible to treat the skin with running water, you can apply cold, ice, wrap the burnt area with a damp cloth.

Wet compresses are changed every 4-5 minutes, it is not recommended to cool the skin in this way for longer than half an hour. However, if the pain and burning sensation reappear, it is possible, after a short break, to re-apply the hypothermic dressing.

Burns should be cooled immediately, no later than two hours after exposure to boiling water.

2. Sterile dressing

Before blisters appear on the skin, after cooling, a sterile gauze dressing is applied, dry or wet-drying.

Special post-burn dressings are sold in pharmacies, but if it is not at hand at the time of the burn, then an olasol is applied under the bandage, you can treat the wound with antiseptic agents such as furacilin solution or chlorhexidine to prevent infection.

3. Anesthetize

If the pain is strong, it is worth treating the wound locally (with lidocaine, novocaine) or taking pills inside.

Burned limbs are kept elevated to reduce swelling.

Minor burns heal on their own quite quickly, more serious lesions require medical advice and, in some cases, hospitalization.

Bandages for the treatment of burns

After the initial treatment of the burn, the skin is protected from infection with a sterile dressing.

Types of bandages:

• Gel bandages and wipes have a wound-healing effect, soothe burning and itching, cool the burnt surface and prevent the ingress of pathogenic microflora. With shallow burns, a timely applied gel dressing will not allow blisters to appear on the skin. It is very important that the damaged area of ​​the skin is moistened, and the dressing does not stick to the wound, allowing, at the same time, to locally anesthetize the burn through the material.
• Ointment dressings are applied to stimulate the formation of granular tissue. Variants of such dressings: with levomecol, 2% furatsilin ointment, dioxicol, miramistin, Lavendula ointment.
• used for disinfection with weak shallow burns. Salt is a strong antiseptic, you can prepare such a bandage yourself. In order not to harm small blood vessels, the concentration of saline should not exceed 10% (10 g of table salt per 90 g of water). A cotton, linen napkin, bandage or gauze is impregnated with saline, slightly squeezed and the wound is bandaged. In no case should you wrap the bandage with a film and make a compress, as this will lead to an increase in skin temperature at the burn site and aggravate the situation.

A wide range of dressings for the treatment of burns is offered by the pharmaceutical company Paul Hartmann.

1. Brandolinda dressing with balsam of Peru heals shallow burns and has antiseptic properties. Contraindicated in people with allergies to substances that make up the Peru balsam.
2. The dressing impregnated with Ringer's solution has a high adsorbing capacity, cleans the wound and absorbs exudate, and provides the necessary skin hydration.

At home, a weak light pink solution of potassium permanganate can be used to treat a wound.

At the stage of epithelium regeneration, to accelerate the granulation process, drugs are used that contribute to this: bepanten, solcoseryl, dexpanthenol. They can also be used to treat shallow burns in children.

Separately, it must be said about cases when a face is burned with boiling water: even with a superficial exposure of the skin to a boiling liquid, one should seek medical help in order to exclude complications.

Alternative treatment of burns with boiling water

How to treat burns if there are no medicines at hand? For tissue healing, traditional medicine recommends:

• After 10-12 hours, the burn site is treated, it promotes rapid skin regeneration, eliminates pain and itching;
• It has a strong wound healing and regenerating effect: the juice or pulp of fresh leaves is applied to the skin under a sterile bandage;
• Several times a day, a mixture of raw grated potatoes and honey is applied to the affected area (1 teaspoon per 1 medium potato);
• 1 st. l. oak bark brew 0.25 liters of boiling water, leave for 20 minutes. Wash the affected areas with infusion, apply moistened wipes for several hours under a sterile dressing;
• Soothe pain and relieve inflammation gruel from fresh crushed burdock leaves;
• Carrot juice and pulp have an antiseptic and wound-healing effect. Grated carrots are applied to the burned area of ​​the skin under a bandage;
• Lotions from pumpkin juice or fresh pulp applied under a bandage help;
• Dressings are soaked with lingonberry juice or should not be applied to open wounds;
• Softened cabbage leaves are applied under the bandage;
• In order to soothe pain and relieve inflammation, fresh fatty cottage cheese is applied to the burnt area;
• The areas affected by boiling water are covered with apple slices or grated apple pulp is applied.

What not to do with burns

First aid measures are not always correct, which leads to an aggravation of the situation and the development of complications:

• It is impossible to lubricate the skin immediately after a burn with oils, fatty fermented milk products (sour cream, yogurt). The oily film prevents the natural cooling of the skin and aggravates the situation. Creams, oils, sour cream can only be used after the surface has cooled;
• It is forbidden to tear off lagging skin, pierce blisters and dropsy, since there is a high risk of infecting the wound, causing inflammation and suppuration;
• The skin at the site of the burn is not smeared with brilliant green, iodine, alcohol, so as not to injure it even more;
• If the bandage is stuck to the burn, do not tear it off by force. The crust should be soaked with a warm solution of furacilin, or another antiseptic. If you cannot do it yourself, it is better to contact a medical institution;
• If the burn bleeds under the bandage, seek immediate medical attention.

It is necessary to carefully monitor the sterility of the skin at the site of the burn, for all the changes that occur in order to prevent infection and inflammation.

Deep burns can lead to scarring. However, modern pharmacology offers a large number of drugs that promote uniform healing and prevent consequences.

How serious burns heal should be monitored by a doctor, if necessary - in a hospital setting. The specialist will tell you how many times to change the bandage and what drugs to use for healing. Negligence and amateur performance can seriously harm health and appearance.

Thermal burns are one of the most common household injuries and, of course, most often people are burned with boiling water. The number of victims of careless handling of it increases in the summer. Obviously, this is due to widespread hot water cuts, forcing people to boil water in large volumes frequently. Unfortunately, due to carelessness and neglect of adults, many children suffer.

Symptoms and degrees of burns with boiling water

Probably, there is not a single person who has not been burned with boiling water or just a hot liquid at least once in his life. Fortunately, most of these burns are minor and heal quickly without leaving marks. But with extensive lesions and prolonged exposure to hot water on the skin, you can get a serious, even deadly (due to possible complications) injury.

It is very important to assess the area of ​​damage. If up to 10% of the body surface is burned with boiling water, then the burn is considered local, if more than 10%, then extensive. It is believed that the area of ​​the palm is 1% of the surface of the skin. In children, the surface area of ​​​​the body is much smaller than in adults, so for them a seemingly small burn can become a very serious injury.

• 1 st. a burn with boiling water is characterized by reddening of the skin area on which the hot liquid has entered, severe burning pain, and slight swelling may also occur.
• 2 tbsp. A burn with hot water is manifested by more serious symptoms: in addition to redness and swelling, blisters form at the site of the lesion, filled with a light liquid, their surface is tense, and the contents are transparent. If the bladder cover is damaged, the wound surface may be exposed, which after a few days becomes covered with a thin crust (scab).

The biggest danger for burns with boiling water 2 tbsp. lies precisely in the formed bubbles. It is known that the skin is one of the protective barriers that prevents various microorganisms from entering the body. When the top layer of the skin peels off, an unprotected surface forms under it, which greatly increases the likelihood of a bacterial infection.

• Deep burns of the 3rd and 4th degree, affecting the deepest layers of the skin, subcutaneous fat, muscles and bones, are extremely rare with careless handling of boiling water in everyday life. Such serious lesions, covering up to 100% of the body surface, may be the result of a violation of safety regulations at work or accidents with spills of boiling water.

First aid for burns with boiling water

Usually, with burns with boiling water, the case is limited to damage to the skin of 1 and 2 tbsp., And they can be cured on their own. Quick first aid in this situation can significantly speed up the healing of the wound, and after a few days you can forget about the burn.

The first thing to do is to carefully remove clothing from the affected area of ​​\u200b\u200bthe skin and cool it. The limb can be held under running cold, but not ice-cold water, and this should be done for a long time - about 10-20 minutes. If this is not possible, then ice can be put on the wound (through several layers of tissue) or a towel moistened with cold water, which must be re-cooled as it warms up.

The victim should be taken to a medical facility as soon as possible in cases where he received extensive and deep burns (if blisters appeared, even with a thin cover). During transportation or waiting for an ambulance, a person needs to be warmed, given painkillers and warm drinks.

Treatment of burns at home

For burns of the 1st and 2nd degree, when there is no violation of the integrity of the skin, it is recommended to apply agents containing panthenol to the lesion site (spray and ointment Panthenol, Bepanten ointment, D-Panthenol, Dexapanthenol, etc.). Solcoseryl gel also has a wound healing and anti-inflammatory effect. The drugs should be applied in a thin layer to the skin, do not rub the drugs or soak the bandage with them, you need to let them absorb on their own.

Please note that many medicines are sold in pharmacies in several forms (ointments, gels, creams). For the treatment of burns, you need to choose exactly those of them that are therapeutic (ointments and gels), and not cosmetics (creams).

After treatment and application of the medicine, the wound should be covered with a clean, dry bandage. The application of wound healing preparations should be repeated several times a day (usually 3-4 is enough).

Is it possible to open blisters with burns?

The answer to this question worries everyone who has been burned with boiling water. On the one hand, the bubble cover is a protection against infection getting into the wound, on the other hand, under this very cover there is a liquid that will not resolve itself and there is simply nowhere for it to go without a puncture. That's why a clear answer can not be found even among doctors.

It can be said for sure that if the fluid in the bladder has become cloudy, then this may be a sign of an infection and the development of inflammation. In this case, the bladder definitely needs to be opened, its contents removed and local treatment with antibacterial drugs (baneocin, levokol, etc.) carried out. However, if things have gone so far, then it is better to entrust the opening of the bladder to a doctor who will do it under sterile conditions, treat the wound and give recommendations for further treatment.

You should definitely consult a doctor if the blisters resulting from a burn have a thick cover, and the area of ​​the affected body surface is large.

In other cases, the bubble can be opened on its own, using a sterile needle from a syringe and pre-treating the area around the bubble with alcohol. After opening, it is not necessary to remove the bladder cover, it still continues to protect the wound from dirt and infection. If the bubble is not opened, then sooner or later damage to its tire will still occur and the contents will leak out. You can treat the wound with a non-alcoholic antiseptic (chlorhexidine, miramistin, etc.), gently lubricate the surface with an antibacterial agent and apply a dry, clean bandage to it.

Is it possible to lubricate burns with brilliant green and iodine?

Do not lubricate the affected area of ​​​​the skin with solutions of brilliant green, iodine or potassium permanganate. This is not only useless and causes unnecessary pain, but it can also create diagnostic difficulties for the doctor if you have to turn to him.

Can oil burns be treated?

You can not immediately after a burn to lubricate the skin with oil, any. First, the skin needs to be cooled, and the oil, on the contrary, will prevent the release of heat, thereby aggravating the burn. But you can use oils at the healing stage, sea buckthorn oil boasts good wound healing properties.

Folk remedies for the treatment of burns

Folk remedies should be used with caution, it is often recommended to apply potato gruel to the already chilled skin or sprinkle the burn site with potato starch, soda, grease with kefir or sour cream. Judging by the reviews, such methods are quite effective, and you can use them if there are no drugs at hand. However, you should not experiment with extensive burns with blisters, it is worth trying folk remedies only for 1st degree burns.

When to See a Doctor

Many consider burns to be a minor injury, but sometimes a small burn can cause serious complications. In fact, cases of infection and the development of inflammation at the burn site are not uncommon, and this is fraught with formation after healing.

Consult a doctor if the burn is localized on the face. If opening the bladder after a burn on the leg seems like a harmless procedure, then it’s still not worth risking your face.

If the fluid filling the burn bladder becomes cloudy, red or brown, the surface of the bladder continues to remain tense even a few days after the burn, and throbbing pain appears in the wound area - this is a sign of inflammation. To open the bladder and treat the wound, it is better to contact the surgeon.

Particular attention should be paid to children, even with a burn that is not serious at first glance, it is better to consult a doctor, since bacterial complications in a child develop much faster than in an adult. And not everyone can assess the degree of damage on their own and choose the right treatment tactics.

Which doctor to contact

In case of burns, you must call an ambulance or go to the emergency room yourself. Mild injuries are treated by a surgeon. If, due to intoxication, a burn disease has developed or the area of ​​damage is large, the victim is sent for treatment to a hospital. This may be the department of pure surgery or combustiology.

There is always boiling water in any house - everyone drinks tea or coffee, cooks soup or boils water for other purposes. Therefore, cases of its careless contact with the skin of the hands, feet or body often occur. Finger burns are the most common. Children are especially often burned by dropping or knocking over a cup of hot drink. In this case, you must clearly know what to do with a burn with boiling water, otherwise the consequences can be disastrous.

Severe pain, blisters, itching - these are the main signs of burns. If you take immediate action, these symptoms can be alleviated. Advice from traditional medicine using some products will come to the rescue. However, if a large area is damaged, it is impossible to treat yourself, then you must immediately call the doctors.

First aid for minor burns

• you need to quickly take off your wet hot clothes, trying not to touch the skin, especially if blisters have already appeared on it
• the scalded hand or fingers should be placed under a stream of cold, but not ice-cold water for 10 minutes
• you need to attach a bag of ice or snow to the burned surface of the body, you can use a damp towel or rag
• if the house has panthenol, olazol or levomekol, you need to apply any ointment to the skin, this will reduce pain and help speed up healing

• it is allowed to lubricate the scalded place with alcohol
• in the absence of ointments in the first-aid kit, it is necessary to use alternative methods of treatment
• It is not superfluous to put a clean bandage on the limb or bandage the fingers burned with boiling water to prevent infection of the skin when the blister bursts.

Prohibited remedies for burns:

• vegetable oil
• suet
• sour cream or kefir

These products do not provide the benefits once applied, as many previously thought. They lead to skin inflammation, treatment complications, and even scarring.

Treatment of burns with folk remedies

After the burnt surface has been washed with cold water, various products available in every home can be applied to this place. This should be done immediately before bubbles appear.

Here are the most popular tips:

• Raw potatoes work well. You can simply cut a potato in half and apply the cut to the skin or blister, but grating it is more effective. The resulting mixture should be applied to the burnt place, in case of a finger burn, you just need to hold it in a plate. A cloth bandage should be applied to the potato mass. After the mixture warms up, it must be replaced with a new one. Potato starch has the same therapeutic effect. They need to sprinkle the skin with a thick layer, then bandage not very tight
• In summer, a fresh cabbage leaf will help. It must be torn off immediately, it should not be stored. Attached to the scalded place, a cabbage leaf should be wrapped for half an hour with a cloth, this will relieve pain, help remove redness, reduce the bubble

• Burns of the finger or limbs heal well if moistened with cold strong tea leaves. Both black and green tea are suitable for this. The burnt place is poured with tea leaves, then wrapped with a cloth, also dipped in strong tea. It is recommended to do this procedure several times.
• If aloe grows at home, its juice will also have a healing effect on the blisters. From the fleshy leaf of the plant, it is necessary to cut off the skin and attach it to the area affected by boiling water. Even better, crush the leaf and place the gruel under the bandage for the whole day or night.
• Immediately after scalding with boiling water, fresh carrots, rubbed on a fine grater, should be applied to the area, wrapping it with a cloth. After absorbing the juice, the carrots are replaced with fresh ones. If a bubble appears, this method will no longer help.

• From blisters, an ordinary chicken egg well beaten with a mixer helps well. Dense egg foam should be applied to the skin and left to dry.
• If there is an alcohol infusion of propolis in the home medicine cabinet, wipe the burn site with it after washing with water, then moisten the bandage
• When a bubble appears at the site of the burn, potassium permanganate can be diluted in water. A weak pink solution should be very carefully lubricated with a blister, they are also impregnated with a tissue bandage
• The surface affected by boiling water should immediately be lubricated with sea buckthorn oil, applying it with a cotton pad
• If nothing is at hand, regular toothpaste will do. It is necessary to squeeze it out of the tube a little and apply it on the burnt areas.

The interaction of people today with various objects heated to a high temperature, or containing a hot liquid, is commonplace. Accidentally spilling boiling water from a kettle, a dropped pan, or even careless washing of hands can cause a person to get burned. Therefore, burns in industrial conditions or at home occur quite often, about 20% of cases occur in children and adolescents. What to do with a burn with boiling water at home? What measures should be taken to quickly recover from a burn and minimize the consequences for the skin and the whole body? Read in this article.

We understand: what are burns

A burn is a damage to tissues (usually superficial) of the body caused by exposure to high temperature substances, chemicals, acids and alkalis. There is also a division by type into:

• Thermal burns(the most common);
• Chemical burns(acids, salts of heavy metals and others);
• Electrical burns(less common).

Based on the statistics, we can confidently say that hot water burn ranks first in prevalence. The degree depends on the amount and degree of heating of the liquid acting on the injured area. Upon receipt, it is necessary to visually inspect the site of the lesion and try to determine the degree to select the correct treatment tactics.

There are 4 degrees of burn. 1 and 2 degrees can be treated at home, 3 and 4 only with the participation of a doctor.

What are the degrees?

1 degree- predominantly the surface of the skin is affected, swelling and redness occur at the site of contact with hot liquid. Small blisters filled with liquid may appear. Usually a 1st degree burn heals quickly (3-7 days) and does not require special treatment.

2 degree- swelling and redness are more pronounced, tissues are damaged to a greater depth than with 1 degree. Bubbles are formed with a liquid of medium or large size, there is a pain syndrome. For grade 2, the normal healing time is 12-16 days, pigmentation may occur on the skin at the site of the lesion, and no scars remain. In the normal course of healing of the 2nd degree, you can also do without the participation of a doctor.

3 degree- at 3 degrees, not only the layers of the skin are affected, but also the muscles and ligaments. A so-called scab appears on the surface of the skin around which bubbles with liquid are located, there is severe pain and swelling. In severe burns of the 3rd degree, inflammation and the appearance of pus in the wound occur, treatment is carried out only with the involvement of a qualified doctor or in a burn center, the healing time is 30-50 days. After the injury is completely healed, a scar will remain on the skin.

4 degree- the most severe degree, characterized by the formation of numerous black scabs, the tissues are charred, anaphylactic shock may develop. In everyday life, as a rule, the risk of getting a 4th degree is unlikely, of course, such injuries are treated only in medical facilities.

The danger is not only in local skin lesions, but also in poisoning the body with decay products of burnt tissues, patients with large area burns (from 25% for 1 and 2 degrees and from 10% for 3 and 4) must be treated under medical supervision.

How to calculate the percentage of damage to the surface of the body

Quite simply, using the method of measuring with the palms (Glumov's method). 1 palm = 1% of body area. Also, for counting, you can use the Wallace method or, as it is called differently, the method of nines. According to this method, the legs are taken as 18% of the body, the arms as 9%, and the head is also considered as 18%. Torso for 36%.

Help immediately after a burn

Indeed, in a situation with a burn victim, assistance should be timely and urgent, because the sooner the necessary measures are taken, the less problems and complications there will be in the future. No need to be nervous and panic first aid it's not difficult, try to follow a set of simple steps.

What to do right away:

• The first and very important task is to remove the heated liquid from the skin surface and all objects that were in the affected area at the time of the incident (elements or fragments of clothing, rings, watches, etc.);

• Then it is necessary to cool the damaged area under a stream of cold water or lower it into water for a period of about 20-30 minutes. If it is not possible to use water, you can apply ice or cold objects from the freezer to the burned area. In case of severe damage to the skin and the presence of a wound, do not cool the burn with water!

• After cooling, you need to protect the affected area from infection and exposure to external factors, apply a bandage. The bandage can be gauze, or it will just be a clean handkerchief, it is advisable to use local anesthetics and antiseptics when applying the bandage. Fits good Solcoseryl in the form of a gel or ointment, also with 1 degree can be used Bepanthen or Panthenol.

If the burn is severe and there is severe pain, take a pain reliever

When to call doctors?

The right decision would be to call an ambulance or contact a health facility if:

• In infants. If it happens that your newborn child is burned, immediately call an ambulance team, children of this age should be treated only under the supervision of a qualified specialist;

• Severe 3rd or 4th degree burn. In case of extensive injuries or damage to a large area, qualified medical assistance is also required, the victim is being treated in a hospital;

• If the healing goes badly, the wound does not heal or pus appears - you also need to see a doctor to rule out a number of pathologies.

What Not to Do

• With a severe burn, clothing may stick to the skin, do not need to tear it off, put a bandage over it and take the victim to the hospital;

• It is also forbidden to pierce the formed blisters, this can cause infection of the wound;

• It is forbidden to apply all types of oils to the affected area during therapy;

• Use products such as iodine, brilliant green or medical alcohol.

Treatment at home

Treatment at home it is allowed if these are burns of 1 and 2 degrees, not complicated by inflammation and infection. To get rid of the consequences as soon as possible, you can use both traditional pharmacy products and traditional medicine recipes.

If an open wound has formed, it must be dressed at least once a day, be sure to wash your hands before dressing. You can easily remove the old bandage by soaking it with hydrogen peroxide. Then carry out an antiseptic treatment of the edges (don't smear the burn itself!) available means (iodine, brilliant green or others). Then apply one of the following medicines to the damaged skin.

Traditional proven means:

Solcoseryl- is available in the form of a gel or ointment, accelerates healing and promotes the rapid formation of healthy tissue in the affected area, has an antiseptic effect, and performs a drainage function.

Panthenol or Dexpanthenol- the most affordable tool. Perfectly regenerates skin, tissues and mucous membranes. It is also an analgesic and cooling agent for the surface of the epidermis, eliminates the burning effect.

Bepanthen- the most high-quality remedy, used for extensive lesions of the skin and problems with tissue regeneration, has a pronounced antiseptic effect. The most expensive tool on our list.

Traditional medicine:

Plantain leaves - for the treatment of a burn with the help of plantain, its fresh, not wilted leaves are needed, they must be thoroughly washed and applied to the skin area, pressing with a bandage. They have an antiseptic effect.

Potato - potato and its derivatives have long proven themselves in the treatment of skin burns, this is a fairly simple remedy and is suitable for everyone: cut the potato into slices and apply them changing every 3 hours. Perfectly eliminates burning sensation on the skin.

carrot gruel- Pour boiling water over the carrots, wash, grate on a fine grater and apply the resulting slurry to the site of damage. You can use a bandage for better retention, carrot juice should fall on the damaged tissue. Change at least once every 2 hours.

Tea brew - You can use this simple recipe if you want to cool the surface of the skin and relieve itching and burning, apply fresh tea leaves, pre-steamed and cooled, to the site of exposure, changing every 1.5 hours.

Unfortunately, a burn with boiling water on one scale or another is a fairly common variant of existing household injuries. Remarkably, a fifth of the cases are children's burns. It is for this reason that a burn with boiling water, in which first aid is extremely necessary to quickly alleviate the condition of the victim and ensure minimal consequences from its impact, requires, in fact, the definition of key moments in its provision.

Determination of the degree of burn

Getting boiling water on the skin, as you know, provokes the appearance of a burn on it, which is accompanied by wrinkling of the skin and covering it with blisters. In some cases, the skin even peels off - in particular, the development of events is determined based on the specific degree of burn.

• I degree - characterized by reddening of the skin;
• II degree - the appearance of blisters after a few minutes from the moment of the burn;
• III degree - skin lesions, often involving the need for a graft due to damage to the skin, tissue and nerve endings. In this case, a dark red deep wound appears at the site of the burn;
• IV degree - tissue damage becomes even more severe, the victim falls into a state of shock.

Boiling water burn: first aid

• First aid for a burn with boiling water requires the rapid removal of hot wet clothing due to the burning sensation it produces, especially promptness is required in the case of a synthetic fabric on the victim. It is necessary to remove clothes very carefully to exclude the possibility of blisters bursting if they have already appeared. Considering that infection penetrates to the wound through bursting blisters, it is important not only to act quickly, but also to exclude the possibility of piercing blisters for this reason. Sacrifice clothing by cutting it if necessary using scissors and try to avoid it sticking to the skin.
• Further, it is recommended to place the burn site under cold water or in a container with water poured into it. This action will relieve pain, as well as slow down the spread of the burn. The best solution is to hold the burnt area higher - this will reduce the degree of swelling.
• After carrying out the above actions, the burn site is dried and closed with a sterile bandage. It is important to apply it in such a way as to exclude tightness in the contraction of the skin.
• In the case of a first-degree burn, the affected area of ​​the skin is wiped with an alcohol solution or vodka, you can use cologne for lack of these funds. But it is not necessary to use brilliant green or iodine to neutralize the burn, because later it can complicate the doctor's determination of the degree of thermal damage.
• A burn with boiling water and first aid with it are extremely important for the victim, which we have already noted, but there is no place for panic and rash actions. It is for this reason that you should not fill the burn site with fat, oil or ointments. The fact is that the peculiarity of their impact lies in the formation of a film, due to which heat removal is much worse. As you might guess, with a burn, the opposite effect of the influencing factors is required.
• The required cooling of the burn site can be achieved by using sheets or towels soaked in cold water.

Medicines allowed for use

For burns of the first or second degree, first aid can be provided with the use of Olazol or Panthenol in it. It is noteworthy that "Panthenol" can also be used for various types of damage to which the skin is often so susceptible - these are abrasions, sun and domestic burns, various skin cracks.

The use of "Olazol" allows you to anesthetize the lesion, as well as slow down the growth of microorganisms and their reproduction. At the same time, this drug improves the healing processes and accelerates them. Both drugs are easy to use, the application is carried out by the aerosol method.

Solcoseryl ointment / gel is also an effective remedy for burns. It is used both for household burns and for sunburns.

Gel anti-burn wipes, which can also be purchased at a pharmacy, also have an effective effect. With their help, the affected area is cooled, its anesthetization and localization of the burn, in addition, they eliminate microbes. It is not difficult to remove them from the skin after use. We also note that the affected area cannot be sealed using an adhesive plaster - primarily due to the characteristic contraction and subsequent painful peeling off.

If the skin has peeled off as a result of a second-degree burn, the affected area can be treated using an antiseptic that does not contain alcohol. The wound is then covered with a sterile dressing or gel pad.

When should you see a doctor for a burn?

• A doctor's call is necessary with a large area of ​​​​damage (for example, with a palm), especially if the burn is accompanied by peeling skin.
• The help of a doctor is necessary in case of damage within 10-15% of the total area of ​​​​the skin - in this case we are talking about a burn disease and the need for urgent medical care.
• It is also necessary to call a doctor if, after 1-2 days, symptoms begin to appear that indicate an infection has entered the burn site. In particular, they consist in the appearance of edema, the spread of redness and fever.
• III-IV degree burns require a mandatory call to the doctor.
• Moderate burns are treated in a polyclinic, severe burns, respectively, are treated in a burn, trauma or intensive care hospital.