Boiling oil in the kitchen, hot bath water, a fire from an air conditioner or gas stove: a moment's carelessness can cause a serious accident. Writing in Prothom Alo, Prof. Dr Md Ayub Ali, former unit head of plastic surgery at Bangladesh Medical University (BMU), sets out what to do. In four decades, he says, he has seen burns deepened more by wrong treatment than by the fire, so it is essential to keep a cool head.
If clothes catch fire, do not run: that makes the fire worse. Lie down and roll, or smother the flames with a blanket. Hold the burn under running water at normal temperature for at least 20 minutes; this draws out the heat and stops the damage spreading deeper into the tissue.
Take off rings, watches, jewellery and tight clothing quickly, because they become dangerous once the area swells, but do not pull away cloth stuck to the skin. Cover the burn gently with a clean dry cloth or sterile dressing and go to a burn unit or plastic surgery department.
Put nothing on a burn: no ice, toothpaste, egg, ghee, oil, cow dung or lime. These cause infection and deepen the wound. Do not burst blisters; in the doctor's words, a blister is the skin's natural bandage.
Breathing difficulty, burns to the face or throat, smoke inhalation, loss of consciousness, or a large or deep wound mean the patient must be taken to hospital without a moment's delay.
First aid is not the end of the fight, Prof. Ayub Ali notes. Skin grafting and reconstructive surgery at the right time reduce scarring, contracture and deformity and restore the use of a limb. Burns can leave people disabled and unable to work, which is why developed countries teach children what to do through regular fire drills.
Source: Prothom Alo
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