First aid to the child for burns at home

Burns in children (even minor) require mandatory parental intervention. After all, it depends on how quickly and competently the first aid will be provided, whether the consequences of such an injury will come, how destructive they will be.

Unfortunately, even in our age, when information is “extracted” easily, many parents are still sure that with a burn you need to smear your child with baby cream or sour cream. About what should be the first aid to the child at home, you will learn by reading this article.

There are no such children's burns in nature that would not require emergency assistance at all. Since these injuries in childhood are very common, their children usually get home, to know the rules of first aid is simply necessary. If the kid is burned, the sequence of actions must be clear and strict.

First you need to understand how big and deep the burn is. Determining the extent of the damage is not so difficult; for this, parents do not have to be health workers.

There are four stages of such lesions:

• At first, only the skin surface is affected. This is manifested by redness and slight swelling.
• When the second edema and redness are complemented by the rapid formation of papules and vesicles. Blisters and blisters are usually filled with clear or turbid serous fluid.

• The third degree is characterized by deeper lesions. With degree 3A, the outer, partially middle layers of the skin are burned. The wound looks dark, with scabs. With grade 3B, subcutaneous tissue is visible from a blackened wound - the only thing that survived. At this stage, the child no longer feels pain, because the pain receptors and nerve endings are damaged.

• The fourth degree - the death of all layers of the skin, as well as the darkening (and sometimes even charring) of the bones. There is no pain, but there is a high probability of developing a burn disease and life-threatening shock.

The area of ​​the lesion also matters. It is clear that none of the parents in an emergency will not die out with its ruler, for this the medical staff has a “universal cheat sheet”. Each part of the body is about 9%. The exception is the genitals and the perineum - it is 1%, the priest is 18%. However, in small children the proportions are different - their head and neck make up 21% of the body area.

If a child's hands and abdomen are damaged - this is 27% of the body, if only half of the arm is 4.5%, and if the head and the belly are 30%, and if the butt and legs are 36%.

After assessing the condition and calling an ambulance, parents should take care to cool the injury site. To do this, do not use ice, allowed to wash the burn running cool water - if the skin is not damaged, there are no ulcers and wounds. Then you can put on the damaged place diaper or sheet, moistened with cool water.

First aid should not harm the baby, so you can not smear the burn with anything. Especially dangerous fatty substances - children's cream, ointment, sour cream and butter:

• You can not anesthetize the childbecause it will make medical diagnosis more difficult, because with 3 and 4 degrees of injury, the baby does not feel pain, and this is a diagnostic sign. If the kid has tried to relieve the burn with a 2–3 degree, the doctor may make a mistake with the diagnosis.

• It is impossible to independently apply bandages, harnesses, as well as transport the child., because at home it is impossible to assess all the risks, and the baby may have associated injuries - fractures, sprains.
• You can not independently try to treat the wound., take out foreign objects from it, take off the crusts or scab. This increases the risk of infection, bleeding and shock.

More often, such thermal burns are extensive in area, but not very deep. Usually, everything is limited to stage 1-2. If the baby is burnt with boiling water, you need to remove wet clothes and cool the affected areas with cool water. At the first stage (if there is only redness, there are no other skin changes), you can anesthetize the place of the burn, for this purpose it is allowed to use a spray with anesthetic effect - for example, lidocaine agent.

With a large area (about 15%), you need to call a doctor, before his arrival it is allowed to give the child only antipyretic if the temperature has risen - "Paracetamol" or "Ibuprofen».

Oil burns are always much deeper than hot water burns. This is due to a different boiling point of the oils. Usually such injuries range from second to fourth. The most difficult thing in an emergency response to such an injury at home is to remove the oil from the skin, and this should be done as quickly as possible.

For this you can not wipe the site of the lesion. It is necessary to substitute the skin under water at about room temperature and for a long time (at least 15-25 minutes) wash it - without using soap. After that, an “emergency” should be called if the degree is more than a second, and the area of ​​the lesion is more than 5%. It is necessary to refrain from the temptation to lubricate the burn with something and give the child painkillers.

Steam burns always have an impressive area, but shallow depth. An injured area should be cooled down if the skin is intact. If necessary, you can use a spray with an anesthetic effect. With a significant burn, call an ambulance and give the child antihistamines (“Suprastin" or "Loratadine"), It will help reduce swelling.

If a child suffers from a burn of the respiratory tract (for example, by inhaling steam during improper inhalation), then, as a rule, such an injury is accompanied by burns to the face. Respiratory tract burns can occur when volatile chemicals are inhaled.

First, you will need to provide access for fresh air - open all the windows and air vents, bring the child to the balcony or to the street. If the child is conscious, he should be seated in a reclining position. If the child is unconscious, he is laid on his side so that the head and shoulders are above the rest of the body.

In the presence of spontaneous breathing no other measures are needed. If breathing is difficult, it is worth giving the child antihistamine drug in the age dosageThis will help avoid the development of a strong internal edema of the respiratory organs. If breathing is absent, artificial respiration should be performed before the arrival of the doctor.

If the chemicals hit only the skin, parents should thoroughly wash the affected area with running water. It is very important that the water temperature is not high - hot water only increases the destructive effect of certain substances and compounds. All things should be removed from the child right away; chemical drops may remain on them.

After thorough water washing, an antidote should be made. If it is acid, then rinse the skin with a solution of the most common soda at a concentration of 2% (just over two glasses of liquid and a teaspoon of soda), an alkaline burn is rinsed with a very weak acidic solution (suitable vinegar or lemon juice).

If the child has suffered burns to the mucous membranes or eyes, as well as swallowed a certain amount of poisonous liquid, you should thoroughly rinse the eyes, mouth cavity and running the stomach with running water.

The arrival of an ambulance for such injuries is imperative. Most chemical burns in children have a significant degree of severity. If the child is burned with acid, do not remove the dry crust of the scab, which forms on the surface almost immediately.

It is necessary to eliminate the traumatic effect as soon as possible, to remove the iron. Rinse with cool water should be carried out for at least 15 minutes, after which a damp cloth should be applied to the burn area. If the skin is not broken, you can apply the foam "Panthenol».

The difficulty lies in the fact that when trying to take away the iron from the burn, the tissue is often injured and peeled off. In this case, do not smear the burn with anything. In case of injury, a 2–3 degree child’s team is called an “ambulance” brigade; in case of a lighter injury, it is allowed to go to the hospital on its own. With a strong pain syndrome, you can alleviate the condition with the help of anesthetic sprays.

Providing emergency care begins with the fact that the child must be placed in a shade or brought into the room. It should be as much as possible to strip it, cool the skin with cool water, it is better to attach a wet sheet or diaper to them.

Smear fat cream or sour cream can not be anything, if necessary, you can use the foam "Pentenol". From high heat, a child can be given antipyretics "Nurofen" or "Paracetamol". They have a small analgesic effect.

Treatment of minor burns may be carried out at home; during therapy, you will need to take into account all doctor's prescriptions. Treat more serious injuries better in the hospital. There exists the possibility of qualified treatment of wounds with preliminary full anesthesia.

If necessary, the child will be prescribed antibiotics, antiseptics, intravenous fluids of nutrient solutions that will help the body compensate for the loss of fluids. In severe cases, surgery is indicated, as well as long-term rehabilitation.

Properly provided first aid helps physicians immediately proceed to the second (main) stage of therapy. Parents' mistakes in rendering first aid can significantly complicate both the diagnosis and the treatment process. The consequences of illiterate care are scars, heart and kidney problems, amputation.

What is a chemical burn and what are its symptoms? What kind of help you can provide yourself, and in what cases can not do without a doctor? Dr. Komarovsky will answer all questions.