Burns, their types,treatment and cautions

A burn is damage to your body's tissues caused by heat, chemicals, electricity, sunlight or radiation. Scalds from hot liquids and steam, building fires and flammable liquids and gases are the most common causes of burns. Another kind is an inhalation injury, caused by breathing smoke.

 There are three types of burns:

First-degree burns damage only the outer layer of skin
Second-degree burns damage the outer layer and the layer underneath
Third-degree burns damage or destroy the deepest layer of skin and tissues underneath
Burns can cause swelling, blistering, scarring and, in serious cases, shock and even death. They also can lead to infections because they damage your skin's protective barrier. Antibiotic creams can prevent or treat infections. After a third-degree burn, you need skin or synthetic grafts to cover exposed tissue and encourage new skin to grow. First- and second-degree burns usually heal without grafts.
For minor burns, including first-degree burns and second-degree burns limited to an area no larger than 3 inches (7.6 centimeters) in diameter, take the following action:
Cool the burn. Hold the burned area under cool (not cold) running water for 10 or 15 minutes or until the pain subsides. If this is impractical, immerse the burn in cool water or cool it with cold compresses. Cooling the burn reduces swelling by conducting heat away from the skin. Don't put ice on the burn.
Cover the burn with a sterile gauze bandage. Don't use fluffy cotton, or other material that may get lint in the wound. Wrap the gauze loosely to avoid putting pressure on burned skin. Bandaging keeps air off the burn, reduces pain and protects blistered skin.
Take an over-the-counter pain reliever. These include aspirin, ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, others), naproxen (Aleve) or acetaminophen (Tylenol, others). Use caution when giving aspirin to children or teenagers. Though aspirin is approved for use in children older than age 2, children and teenagers recovering from chickenpox or flu-like symptoms should never take aspirin. Talk to your doctor if you have concerns.


For major burns, call  emergency medical help. Until an emergency unit arrives, follow these steps:
Don't remove burned clothing. However, do make sure the victim is no longer in contact with smoldering materials or exposed to smoke or heat.
Don't immerse large severe burns in cold water. Doing so could cause a drop in body temperature (hypothermia) and deterioration of blood pressure and circulation (shock).
Check for signs of circulation (breathing, coughing or movement). If there is no breathing or other sign of circulation, begin CPR.
Elevate the burned body part or parts. Raise above heart level, when possible.
Cover the area of the burn. Use a cool, moist, sterile bandage; clean, moist cloth; or moist cloth towels.

Caution

Don't use ice. Putting ice directly on a burn can cause a person's body to become too cold and cause further damage to the wound.
Don't apply egg whites, butter or ointments to the burn.This could cause infection.
Don't break blisters. Broken blisters are more vulnerable to infection.