Different Types of Burns With Pictures
What are the Different Types of Burns?
Burns may be defined as injuries resulting from the application of dry heat (e.g. flame and heated solid substances) or chemical substances to the external or internal surfaces of the body resulting in more or less destruction of the tissues. All the different types of burns have explained in this article.
What is First Degree Burn?
Sign and Symptoms of First Degree Burns:
All the clinical features of first degree burns have listed below:
- Swelling and redness of the injuries area,
- Injuries are superficial or mild,
- No blister is seen,
- Pain develops,
- The burned area becomes white on touch,
- It takes 3-6days to heal.
Treatment of First Degree Burns:
Some important first aid or treatment of first degree burns are-
- Remove the patient from the heat source,
- Remove the burnt clothing,
- Run cool water over the burnt area,
- Gently clean the injured area,
- Gently dry,
- Apply antibiotic such as silver sulphadiazine,
- Use a sterile bandage to cover burns,
- Send the victim to the nearest hospital as soon as possible,
- Take tetanus vaccination if required.
What is Second Degree Burn?
The burn site appears blistered, red, and maybe swollen and painful in case of second-degree burns. It involves the epidermis and part of the dermis layer of the skin.
All the clinical features of second-degree burns have presented in the following:
- Swelling, redness, and pain observed,
- Burns extends to the middle skin layer, dermis,
- Blisters develop that ooze a clear fluid,
- Dehydration may occur,
- The burnt area may turn while on touch,
- Scars may develop,
- Restrict movement,
- Healing time varies, depends on the extent of the injury.
Some useful first aid or treatment of second-degree burns are-
- Clean the affected area thoroughly,
- Gently dry,
- Apply antibiotic over the affected area,
- Make the patient lie down,
- Keep burnt body part at a raised level,
- Skin grafting may be required,
- Physical therapy may be essential to aid mobility,
- Splints may be used to rest affected joints,
- Hospitalization is essential.
All the layers of the skin are destroyed in case of third-degree burns. It extends into the subcutaneous tissues.
The clinical features of third-degree burns have listed below:
- Damage occurs to all three skin layers,
- Destroys adjacent hair follicles sweat glands, nerve endings,
- Lack of pan due to destroyed nerves,
- Injuries area does not turn while on touch,
- No blisters observed,
- Swelling occurs,
- The skin develops a leathery texture,
- Discoloration of the skin observed,
- Scars develop,
- Crusty surfaces (Eschar) develop impairs circulation,
- Dehydration occurs resulting in shock,
- The symptom may worsen with time,
- Disfigurement may result,
- Healing depends on the extent of the injury,
- 90% body surface injury results in death,
- 60% injury in elderly, fatal.
Some necessary first aid or treatment of third-degree burns are-
- Required immediate hospital care,
- Dehydration treated through intravenous fluid supply,
- Oxygen is administered,
- Eschars are surgically opened,
- Periodically run clean cool water over burns,
- A nutritious diet helps to heal quickly,
- Regular monitoring essential,
- Mental depression is treated by an anti-depressant.
Maria Khatun Mona is a Founder and Editor of Nursing Exercise Blog. She is a Nursing and Midwifery Expert. Currently she is working as a Registered Nurse at Evercare Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh. She has great passion in writing different articles on Nursing and Midwifery. Mail her at “maria.mona023@gmail.com”