A hand burn is a type of injury that is often encountered in medical practice. This kind of trouble happens to people in everyday life and in the work environment. Damage to the skin and subcutaneous structures requires immediate action. Among all parts of the body, it is the hands that most often suffer from burns. They come into contact with hot appliances, aggressive chemicals and even open flames. It is important to properly provide assistance to the victim before doctors arrive. These measures will speed up healing and eliminate the risk of complications.
Severity of burns
Experts distinguish several degrees of hand burns:
- First . In mild cases, only the top layer of skin is injured. The patient experiences pain and redness of the epidermis, but the integrity is not broken and the nerve endings are not affected. Treatment usually takes 3-4 days.
- Second . The average degree is characterized by damage to the epidermis and the layer below it. Patients experience pain, swelling, and blisters. The burned area may begin to become wet. It is likely that nerve endings are affected. If the blisters rupture, they can become infected. Treatment usually takes about a week.
- Third . In moderate to severe cases, deeper layers are damaged. In this case, the skin acquires a whitish tint.
- Fourth . This is the most severe degree when the dermis is charred. Muscle tissue, tendons, and bones may be affected.
Depending on the severity, a treatment regimen is drawn up.
When to see a doctor
If the patient notices that the burn does not heal for a long time or begins to get wet, then you should immediately contact a specialist for help. Only a doctor can prescribe the correct treatment, which will prevent the development of severe complications. Symptoms for which you should consult a doctor :
- Isolation of serous exudate and pus from the wound surface;
- Increasing pain or its reappearance after subsiding;
- Hyperemia and swelling;
- Chills and increased local and general body temperature.
A surgeon treats a weeping and purulent wound after a burn. You should contact the clinic. If necessary, the doctor will give a referral to a surgical hospital. If you have a weeping wound of a 2nd degree burn, you can also consult a dermatologist.
First aid to the victim
To alleviate the condition of the victim and prevent complications, patients need to provide first aid for a hand burn. It consists in:
- Immediately free your hands from clothes, take off your watches and bracelets. Subsequently, it will be more difficult to remove everything, as swelling will begin to increase. But do not rip off clothing if skin is stuck to the fabric.
- Cool the injured area with cold water. Thanks to this, it is possible to prevent the heat from spreading to deeper layers. The event also allows you to cope with painful sensations.
- After 15 minutes of cooling, blot the painful area with a lint-free cloth and apply a sterile bandage. Be sure to check that the bandage does not press or rub, especially if bubbles have formed.
- In case of severe pain, give the victim a painkiller.
The patient needs to constantly drink, since even with minor burns the volume of circulating blood is significantly reduced.
What is prohibited to do
When providing first aid, it is necessary to understand once and for all what not to do. If the wound is not properly treated, it can have the opposite effect and worsen the patient’s condition. You should always have first aid supplies for burns in your first aid kit at home.
Absolutely forbidden:
- treat injured skin with oils and ointments, as this can cause infection;
- puncture any blisters that appear;
- apply ice, as this will contribute to tissue frostbite;
- treat the burned area with alcohol, iodine, potassium permanganate, as alcohol-based products provoke even greater pain.
If thermal burns on the hands are larger than the palm, call a doctor immediately.
What not to do
You should definitely not apply ointment to the affected area.
Moreover, you should not use eggs, butter, sour cream and all other means: they will only slow down healing and interfere with the doctors who will treat the wound. In addition, sour cream or butter can introduce bacteria into the wound.
Even if these methods worked for ten generations of your grandmothers and great-grandmothers, don't do it. Leave the wound clean.
If you can't wait to treat it, treat it with chlorhexidine if the burn is shallow.
Also, do not apply ice to the surface of the wound, so as not to injure it with cold when the skin is already damaged.
TOP best ointments for treating burns
When considering how to treat a burn on your hand, pharmacies offer a wide range of ointments for wound healing. Unlike gels and creams, ointments are thicker, so they are not absorbed into the epidermis so quickly when they remain on the affected area for a long period of time. Typically, it is recommended to apply such products at night, since during the daytime they stain clothes and leave marks.
Let's look at the best remedies that help with both chemical and thermal burns of the hand:
- Rescuer . The product contains natural ingredients, so it does not cause any harm. The drug helps with minor injuries, but helps prevent infection of the burn. Apply Rescuer up to 3 times a day.
- Radevit . When considering what to do if you burn your hand, you can try applying Radevit ointment. The drug is an exclusively vitamin complex. The ointment does not prevent infection, but has a pronounced dermatotropic effect. The product stimulates regeneration processes and improves cell division in the basement membrane of the epidermis. Apply twice a day.
- Stellanin . For burns on both hands, treatment should begin with the use of Stellanin ointment. The active component stimulates the regenerative abilities of tissues. The product contains active iodine, which has a bactericidal effect. In addition to accelerating healing, the product protects the skin from secondary infection.
Before using any ointment, it is important to consult a specialist, as medications can cause complications.
Mechanism and signs of appearance
Blisters and blisters from burns can appear either immediately or some time after contact with high temperatures.
The site of the skin injury initially looks reddened, slightly swollen (1st degree burn), and the pain is quite strong, but tolerable.
After a few minutes, an elevation appears at the site of the lesion, quickly filling with translucent yellowish serous fluid, sometimes mixed with blood.
The surface of the vesicles is usually painless upon palpation; pain is caused by the effect on the nerve endings under the formed blister. With a relatively mild burn, the bubbles and blisters do not exceed 1.5-2 cm in size. With a more severe degree of injury, they can merge and form the so-called. bulls.
Healing of burns usually takes 2-3 weeks , unless complications arise in the form of infection of the affected area.
The best plasters and dressings
Paying attention to the question of what to do if your hand is burned, you need to pay attention to medications in the form of plasters and bandages. Suspensions create the necessary moist environment, which prevents the appearance of blisters and reduces their size. All bandages are very easy to attach and remove without pain.
Let's look at the most effective plasters and bandages for burn wounds. This:
- Voskopran . The sterile dressing is based on beeswax, vitamin E, and propolis. If there is a first stage burn and there are no signs of wound infection, it is recommended to use a basic dressing. When wounds become infected, dioxidine coating is suitable. Dioxidin is characterized by a disinfecting effect. Apply the bandage only once a day. But the product is not used for sunburn.
- Branolind N. When considering what is possible in case of a hand burn, it is worth taking a closer look at the anti-burn bandage Branolind N. It is characterized by restorative and disinfecting effects. This is a gauze bandage soaked in essential oils. The applied bandage numbs the area for up to 36 hours. A bandage soaked in Peruvian balsam not only helps with boiling water burns, but also prevents the appearance of scars.
- Gelepran . The base of the product is not a wax coating, but a gel coating. The dressings are very easy to apply and painless to remove. Dressings with lidocaine and miramistin are produced. In the first case, the bandage is applied immediately after receiving a burn, which allows you to instantly overcome the pain. The second variety copes with pathogenic organisms, fungi, and viruses. Such remedies are indicated for any burns on both hands.
Such means for treating burns are as safe as possible for the victim.
How can you get a burn?
Burns are injuries to the skin and tissues that most often occur due to high temperature: leaning against something hot, spilling boiling water on the skin.
But you can get a burn in other ways. Dangerous:
- Radiation. That's why we get sunburned or suffer from solarium overdose.
- Chemical substances. Therefore, household chemicals need to be put away in a safe place and worked with in protective clothing: gloves, an apron and goggles.
- Friction. Therefore, you need to carefully descend the rope.
- Electricity. This is why electrical injuries are so dangerous: they damage tissue with deep burns.
TOP sprays for burns
When considering how to treat a hand burn, you should choose sprays. This dosage form is much more practical and convenient. Absolutely all aerosols cope with pain, swelling, and also reduce erythema. The best means are:
- Panthenol . The product starts and supports tissue regeneration processes. The drug is also characterized by an anti-inflammatory effect. Spray the spray onto the damaged area 2-3 times a day at a distance of 15-30 cm. After application, the wound should be completely covered with foam.
- Acerbin . When choosing how to treat your hand after a burn, you should try Acerbin spray. It contains several components that have analgesic, softening, disinfecting, and wound-healing effects. For a first-degree burn, simply spray the spray onto the damaged area. For a second degree burn, apply a bandage.
- Amprovisol . When deciding how to treat your hand after a burn, you can try Amprovisol spray. This is a comprehensive remedy that helps with shallow forms of burns. It is characterized by analgesic, pronounced regenerating, alleviating and healing effects. Spray onto the burned area at a distance of 20 cm for several seconds.
Such drugs combine well with other forms of medication, so they are often part of a comprehensive treatment regimen.
In what cases does a wound become wet after a burn?
Having received a second or third degree burn, the victim is faced with the formation of a wound that becomes wet.
This occurs due to the formation of blisters, which are peeling skin due to injury. When the bubble bursts, it’s a matter of time, and a wound with a weeping surface will inevitably appear at the site of the lesion. Treatment of a weeping burn involves systematically drying the wound using agents that form an elastic film on the damaged surface.
Effective gels
Paying attention to the question of what to do if you burn your hand at home, it is important to choose the right treatment. Let's look at the most effective gels:
- Solcoseryl . The product is characterized by a pronounced regenerative effect, stimulates cell division and helps tissues quickly recover from injury. It has a very light consistency, is quickly absorbed and does not leave stains. It is recommended to start using the gel when the wound is already dry.
- Lioxazine . The composition contains a component that normalizes blood circulation in blood vessels. The drug prevents vasospasm. It is also characterized by a disinfecting effect, preventing the dermis from the proliferation of pathogenic flora. It has a pronounced analgesic effect.
- Apollo gel . When considering what to do if you have a thermal burn on your hand, you should definitely try Apollo gel. The composition contains components that have disinfecting and analgesic effects. The drug also prevents wound infection. If you use the gel right away, you can prevent the appearance of bubbles. The duration of treatment is from 3 days to a week.
Since the products also have contraindications for use, it is important to consult a doctor first.
Self-therapy
Treating wounds at home is only possible for mild lesions. In other cases, mandatory hospitalization is required. Self-treatment of injuries occurs according to the following scheme:
- damaged tissues are treated with antiseptic agents several times a day. This will prevent the penetration of infection and the development of the inflammatory process. Chlorhexidine and Miramistin are most often used for treatment;
Chlorhexidine and Miramistin are most often used for treatment.
- specialized ointments allow you to speed up recovery processes. Bepanten, Panthenol and other healing agents provide mild pain relief and also prevent inflammation;
Ointments allow you to speed up recovery processes.
- antibiotics are used if necessary. Typically, anti-inflammatory drugs (Levomekol, etc.) are applied in the form of ointments;
- if there is pain, you may need to take painkillers;
- antihistamines help to quickly cope with swelling and reduce burning and itching.
They use Fenistil, etc.; Antihistamines reduce burning and itching. - To improve the condition and help the body recover faster, additional vitamin and mineral supplements are usually prescribed.
Traditional methods
Considering how a burn on the hand heals, it is worth noting that regeneration occurs due to the effects of medicinal components in the composition of the drugs. During healing, the top layer of dermis may peel off. The duration of healing depends on the duration of exposure to the source, the addition of a secondary infection, etc. But the healing process can be accelerated with the help of traditional medicine.
In case of hand burns, you can use the following effective recipes:
- Plantain leaves . Take a couple of leaves, grind in a blender until you get a paste, which you apply to the affected area. The product quickly soothes the skin, relieves pain and accelerates the healing process.
- Potato . Take a raw tuber, grate it on a fine grater and apply it to the burned area. The vegetable quickly relieves pain and inflammation. Often included in the overall treatment regimen.
- Tea brewing . Take a tea bag, brew it stronger and soak a cotton pad in the brew. Use it to treat the injured areas and then bandage your hands.
But during treatment, it is important to understand that with complex burns, traditional medicine alone is not able to completely cope with the problem. They must be included in the overall treatment regimen.
