First aid steps for burns in children

Immediately immerse the burn in cool water, assess the depth of the burn to choose how to take care of your baby at home or take to the hospital .

>>>How to provide first aid for burns

You turn on the dinner for the whole family, the hot bowl of soup has just been placed on the table. Two-year-old baby quietly appeared, curious little hand reached on the table, discovered strange objects. You turn to look at the baby, it is too late and the hand is flooded in the soup.

You are the clothes, the phone rings, you take advantage of the call. The 3-year-old has been watching my mother's work intently and shows great interest in the iron. You turn your back a few seconds, the hot table collapses on the baby.

These are just a few of the numerous cases of childhood burns, which can occur even with the most careful parents.

Need to do as soon as the baby burns

The first and most important thing is to stop the harmful effects of heat. Even if the skin is no longer in contact with the agent causing burns, the heat accumulated in the burn continues to cause further damage. Cooling the wound with cool cool water helps to reduce heat, relieve pain, reduce edema, inflammation and reduce the depth of the wound.

The first and most important thing is to stop the harmful effects of heat.(Artwork: Mensxp.com)

1. It is best to immediately immerse the burned part of your body in clean, cool water. If not, you can flush cool water on it several times, or let the tap water run up. Do not use cold ice to cool it as it may cause skin damage.
2. Cut off all the clothing that covers the burn, and then add cool water to the wound again. Take care not to remove clothing to avoid skinning the burn area. Also do not turn over your baby's head because you can burn your baby on the face.
3. Continue to cool the burn with clean water for at least 20 minutes. You can also use a cool towel to cover the wound, constantly changing towels every few minutes. Try to take these measures even if your baby is crying and protesting.
4. Do not apply toothpaste, egg whites . on the burn to avoid increased damage.
5. Reassure and give your child an analgesic (paracetamol) if needed.

Quickly cooling the burn with clean cool water within 20 minutes is the number one important measure to help minimize the level of injury.

Evaluate the depth of burns

First-degree burn:

1. Red skin, no water burn.
2. Only the shallowest skin layer is affected.
3. The burn heals quickly, leaving no scars.

Second-degree burn:

1. Deeper skin damage, water burns, pain (absolutely do not disturb these blisters).
2. Part of the dermis (deep part of the skin) remains, so the skin can be regenerated.
3. If the treatment is correct, there will be no scars unless the burn area is too large.

3rd degree burn:

1. Destroy the entire thickness of the skin. There is usually no water balloon because the top layer of the skin has been destroyed.
2. The burned skin is white or scorched. Can burn deeply to muscles and bones.
3. Leave scars even if treated properly.

Take your baby to see a doctor if:

1. Large burns in one part of the body (burns the entire back, or chest and abdomen, or burns an entire limb). Large burns are very dangerous because they cause lots of water loss and cause pain for children.
2. Burns on the face.
3. Burns of degree 2 or higher.

How to take care of burns

Aloe gel works well with minor burns.(Artwork: Dailydock.com).

- First-degree burn: Aloe (aloe vera) is a very good weapon in the treatment of minor burns. Apply aloe vera gel (100% content type) to the burn several times a day. Or take an aloe leaf to cut each piece and then cut it thinly, applying it to the skin to make the sap contact the burn.

- Second-degree burn: The treatment is more complicated. Need to consult a doctor. Here are some suggestions:

+ Perform 2 times a day: Rinse the burn with physiological saline. This helps to remove germs and dead skin from the wound surface.

+ Hong burns burns: Apply 1% silver sulfadiazine cream (Silvirin, Silvadene) to the burn. This antibacterial cream is very effective in healing wounds, helping to prevent infection. Cream should be applied with sterile tools. Take a sterile tongue stick bought from a pharmacy to apply a thick layer of cream to the burn. Need a lot of ice cream. In the next change of ice, if you see the entire previous cream was absorbed into the ice, no longer deposited on the surface of the burn should you understand that the drug is not enough.

+ Tape the burn with sterile gauze. One disadvantage of conventional bandages is that it allows the formation of new particles to form at the wound that grows through the gap of the gauze, causing adhesion. Therefore, changing bandages sometimes becomes difficult and very painful for children. Trying to remove the gauze may cause skin damage, which will heal the wound long. Tulle gras help remedy this situation. This is a tape made of special materials, impregnated with drugs, not adhering to the wound surface. It helps maintain moisture, accelerates wound healing and makes dressing changes easy, painless.

Put a piece of tulle gras on the cream, before applying the gauze bandage. If the wound is exuding a lot, you can add a layer of cotton on the gauze layer. Then use the tape for the affected area. Calculate from the inside out, need bandages in order: antibacterial cream, tull gras gauze, sterile gauze, cotton and finally the elastic bandage.

Stretch the skin to prevent shrinkage burns and limit movement later. Usually, when the skin burns, the surrounding skin begins to contract, o squeezing the burned skin. If the burn is on the part of the body that is often highly elastic (for example, palms of skin and fingers), the risk of shrinkage will be large. Perform exercises to stretch the skin around the burn about 10 times a day, once a minute. This helps prevent burn shrinkage which makes it difficult to move later.

When the skin burns off, a new layer of red skin can be seen below. This skin will gradually turn pink. You can stop applying the medication at this time and not have to cover the wound.

- Third-degree burn: It is necessary to see a doctor, not self-treatment at home.

Note: Burns in children are extremely dangerous pathologies, which can be fatal. The child's skin has not reached the adult's thickness, so the child burns faster. Just 5 seconds with 60 degree hot water can cause baby burns level 3.

Pediatrician Tran Thu Thuy