Does My Burn Need Professional Wound Care?
If you see a healthcare professional for your burn treatment, the healthcare professional will determine the extent of your burn by examining your skin. You might be transferred to a burn center if your burn covers more than 10% of your total body surface, is very deep, is on your face, feet, or groin, or meets other established criteria by the American Burn Association.
Your healthcare professional will also check for other injuries and may order X-rays, lab tests, or other diagnostic tests.
Burn Treatment
Most minor burns can be treated right at home. They can usually heal within a couple of weeks.
For a major burn, following necessary first aid and after a healthcare professional has examined your burn, treatment could involve one or even more of the following: medicines, special wound dressings, therapy, or surgery. The goals of your treatment are to control your pain, remove any dead tissue, prevent infection, lower your scarring risk, and restore natural function.
If you have a major burn, you might require treatment at a specialized burn center. You may need a skin graft to cover a large wound. And you may need emotional support and several months of follow-up, such as physical therapy.
First Aid for a Major Burn
For a major burn, apply first aid until emergency help arrives:
- Protect either yourself or the burned person from any further harm. By doing so safely, make sure the source of the burn is no longer in contact.
- Make sure you or the burned person is breathing. If needed, start rescue breathing.
- Remove jewelry and other tight items, especially from the burned area. Burned areas swell quickly.
- Loosely cover the burn area with a clean cloth.
- Lift the wound above heart level if possible.
- Watch for any symptoms of shock. These include clammy skin, weak pulse, and shallow breathing.
Medical Treatment
Medicines and products that can help with healing major burns include:
- Pain and anxiety medication- Healing burns can be painful. You might need morphine and anti-anxiety medicine. These will also be needed while your bandages are being changed.
- Water-based treatments- Your care team could introduce techniques such as whirlpool baths to help remove dead tissue.
- Fluids to prevent dehydration- You just might need intravenous fluids, or an IV, to prevent dehydration and ensuing organ failure.
- Burn ointments and creams- If you are not transferred to a burn center, your care team can use a variety of topical products. Examples are bacitracin and silver sulfadiazine. These will help prevent infection and prepare your wound to close.
- Dressings- Your care team might use various specialty wound dressings to help the wound to heal. If you are being transferred to a burn center, your wound will be covered in dry gauze only.
- Drugs that fight infection- If you develop an infection, you might need IV antibiotics.
- Tetanus shot- Your healthcare team may tell you to get a tetanus shot following a burn injury.
What Not to Do with a Burn
- Do not use cold water to try to cool the burn.
- Do not break the blisters. Blisters will help protect against infection. If a blister breaks, gently clean the area with water and liquid soap. Then apply an antibiotic ointment. Stop using the ointment if a rash appears.
- Do not try to remove any clothing stuck to the burn.
- Do not use a fluffy cotton bandage.
- Do not apply any ointments or pain-killing topical lotions.