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How to Treat Burns
from:No one wants to get burned, but it happens every day to someone. The burn could be nothing more than a splatter of grease, or as severe as a pot of boiling water falling on you while you are cooking. People get burned in a myriad of ways. What if you are alone and you get burned? Do you know what to do?
If you are alone and you have a fairly minor burn, go to the sink and run cool water over your burned area for 15 to 20 minutes. If your burn is not where you can flush it, and then get some towels or cloths to moisten with cool water to apply to the burned site. Everyone should learn how to treat burns before the need for that knowledge takes place. It is better to have the knowledge of how to treat burns than to need that knowledge and not have it. There are many places online that you can research how to treat burns. There are also books available. Periodically your local fire department may give lessons on how to treat burns, and what to do in the case of a fire emergency.
Always use products specifically manufactured to treat burns. Don’t ever use butter or any kind of ointment on a burn because it acts as an insulating barrier to keep the heat in. There is also a greater risk of infecting a burn if you apply butter or some other home remedy on the burn. There is loads of information about how to treat burns.
Assuming the burn is not a very serious one, after flushing the burned area, wrap the injured area with sterile dressing and wrap with cling wrap if you have it. If you have a prepackaged burn first aid kit, there will be directions included to show you how to treat burns. For the healing process to begin after you have wrapped your burn, leave the bandage alone for 24 hours. After a full day and night you may then begin to uncover the wound and clean it with soapy water. Once the area is clean you should then redress the wound.
If your burn is a little more serious, after rendering first aid to your burn you need to call for some help. If you begin to feel shaky, light headed you need to dial 911 for emergency medical intervention, because you may be going into shock. Once you have dialed 911 lie down and elevate your feet and legs on pillows until help arrives.
In the event that you should catch your clothing on fire, do not run. Running is like fanning the flames. Immediately stop, drop, and roll to put out the flames. If you don’t panic, you have an excellent chance of not getting severely burned. You may not know how badly you are burned so call 911 for medical assistance. Then call a neighbor if you can so you won’t be alone. Your neighbor should also know how to treat burns; applying cool moist towels will help relieve the pain of the burn. Get some towels and wet them to put onto your burned areas. Lie down with your feet elevated until emergency help arrives. Do not attempt to remove clothing if it is stuck to your skin. Stay calm until help arrives.
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