Different types of burn injuries

Burns are among the most excruciatingly painful physical injuries. A burn occurs when the skin, and often other bodily organs, comes in contact with heat, radiation, electricity or chemicals for a period long enough to cause damage. Burns can affect many body parts aside from the site of the burn. Nerves, blood vessels, bones, muscles and other areas may be involved when another part of the body is injured. Burns are described according to the depth of injury to the dermis and are loosely classified into first, second, third and fourth degrees. Burns are caused by a wide variety of substances and exte
al sources such as exposure to chemicals, friction, electricity, radiation, and heat. Burn injuries are among some of the most catastrophic injuries that a person can suffer. Depending on the type and severity of the burn, there can be internal injuries, skin damage, infections,cardiac arrest and other complications. Chemical burns can be caused by caustic chemical compounds such as sodium hydroxide or silver nitrate, and acids such as sulfuric acid. Hydrofluoric acid can cause damage down to the bone and its burns are sometimes not immediately evident.

Electrical burns are caused by either an electric shock or an uncontrolled short circuit (A burn from a hot, electrified heating element is not considered an electrical burn). Common occurrences of electrical burns include workplace injuries, or being defibrillated or cardioverted without a conductive gel. A significant part of the damage is done under the surface of the skin. Some of the factors that affects the extent of the injury include the duration of exposure, type of current, intensity of the current, amount of moisture on the body, and the area of the body where the current passed through. Some consequences include cardiac problems, muscle spasms, oral burns, severe skin burns, fractures, and seizures/coma. It can also result to neurological deficits and even death.

Radiation burns are caused by protracted exposure to UV light (as from the sun), tanning booths, radiation therapy (in people undergoing cancer therapy), sunlamps, radioactive fallout, and X-rays. By far the most common burn associated with radiation is sun exposure, specifically two wavelengths of light UVA, and UVB, the latter being more dangerous. Tanning booths also emit these wavelengths and may cause similar damage to the skin such as irritation, redness, swelling, and inflammation. More severe cases of sun burn result in what is known as sun poisoning or "heatstroke".

Scalding is caused by hot liquids (water or oil) or gases (steam), most commonly occurring from exposure to high temperature tap water in baths or showers or spilled hot drinks.A so called immersion scald is created when an extremity is held under the surface of hot water, and is a common form of burn seen in child abuse.A blister is a "bubble" in the skin filled with serous fluid as part of the body's reaction to the heat and the subsequent inflammatory reaction. The blister "roof" is dead and the blister fluid contains toxic inflammatory mediators. Scald burns are more common in children, especially "spill scalds" from hot drinks and bath water scalds.

Burns from fire, hot items, hot water or the sun can also be serious and even life-threatening. When treating a heat burn, you will want to determine how serious the burn is before deciding what method of treatment to use.

A burn is damage to the skin’s tissues, usually caused by excessive heat. Recognizing different types of burns and having a basic knowledge of how to treat them can minimize injury and prevent fatalities. Basically burns are caused by any hot object or a chemical. Usually the most common agent causing burns is the fire. Other agents are hot liquids, electricity and chemicals. The treatment of each type of burns is different from others. Burns in general are very serious injuries.