Burn Victims Health Sciences and Medicine - Essay Example

? Burn Victims No: Burn Victims Injuries are part of lives of human beings and are of diverse types. With the intensity of injuries or wounds, the therapies required should also be more caring. Burning injury ranges from a very minute extent to a major extent and the therapies required also differ according to the extensiveness of injury or wound. When a person gets burnt, he gets exposed to heat of any kind. This heat can be produced by many ways such as fire created heat, electrically produced heat, radioactively produced heat, chemically produced heat and so on (Antoon & Donovan, 2004). All of the described kinds result in burning a person to various extents. This paper analyzes burn victims, therapies mostly used and suitable therapy required for healing the wounds according to the nature of the wound. The burn victims can be divided into three categories that are first degree burn victims, second degree burn victims and third degree burn victims. First degree burn victims are the burn victims who have got less burn injuries and only their outer skin or first layer of the body skin that is also called epidermis has an effect on it with no serious effects on the internal body or fluids of the body. These kinds of victims usually feel soreness and their skin gets reddened (Dyer & Roberts, 1990). The second degree burn victims are the burn victims who have got more burn injuries and their second layer of the skin that is also called dermis gets injured or gets affected. These kinds of victims usually feel soreness, their skin gets reddened and in addition, they get burns and boils on their skin, however, their bones are safe from any damage (Dyer & Roberts, 1990). The third degree burn victims are the most extensive kind of burnt victims, as they have got damaging injuries and both of their skin layers, epidermis and dermis are affected destructively. Even the injuries are not only external but also internal reaching bones and muscles of the victim. The skin of these kinds of victims is not reddened and they feel less pain because the skin appears like leather and sometimes pale. Less pain is there because the nerves that are there are destructed and create no soreness, as they are dead (Dyer & Roberts, 1990). In case of burning, the victims can undergo certain health concerns such as infection due to burning and dehydration. Because of damage caused to the skin of the burnt person, which acts as covering, the person becomes prone to infection. The infection can be noticed if there is a transformed color of the skin that is burnt, if we find purple color with swelled skin, if the burned skin changes its thickness, if there is any kind of fluid discharge from the burn wound or if there is fever (Antoon & Donovan, 2004). In addition to infection, the burned patient can also go through dehydration, as there are prominent chances of body fluid loss resulting in dehydration. The dehydrated burned victim can be observed if he feels extensive thirst, gets weak, feels giddiness, if his skin gets dry and his urination amount is reduced than normal (Antoon & Donovan, 2004). These symptoms indicate that the burned victim is suffering from dehydration. There is no specific place where we can see people at stake of burning but everywhere, there can be a chance of such happening. Homes, factories, industries, work places, streets, roads, everywhere is a risky place for common public due to which, suitable arrangements should be done to control and to minimize such occurrences. The burn victims should be properly cared whether they are the victims of first degree or third degree as their protection coat that is skin is damaged and they are more open to various kinds of infections. Suitable therapeutic measures should be taken for taking care of such persons. For minute burns that can be taken care of at home, extended therapeutic care is not required as only first aid can work (Mandrekas, 1990). However, therapeutic advice can be taken for preventing infection or dehydration. For all the three types of burning, first degree, second degree and third degree, therapeutic measures should be taken. The general measures that are taken vary in nature according to the degree’s difference of the victim. The first steps that can be given to all the burnt victims of any degree come under the category of first aid. For the patients of first degree burns, cool water should be used and the burned place should be washed. Any other thing except cool water should not be applied on the burned place. Any soreness relieving medicine can be taken (Mandrekas, 1990). For patients of second degree burns, the boils should not be tried to be ruptured, the clothes that get attached to the skin while burning should not be tried to be removed, cool water should be used on the burned skin and no other cream or medicine should be applied, however, pain killers can be taken (Mandrekas, 1990). After giving first aid, medical health care should be consulted as soon as possible. For patients of third degree burns, breathing should be checked, cool water should be used for the burns, sterile bandages should be used for major burns, no medication should be applied without therapeutic advice (Mandrekas, 1990). Medical assistance should be acquired as soon as possible. There are various kinds of therapies that can be provided to the burn victims in addition to the first aid. The burn victims face problems related to aches and nervousness. The first kind of therapy that can be provided to the burn victim is massage and physical therapy. Massage therapy is supportive in easing out the patient not only physically but also mentally. Massage therapy can be used during recovery as well as during tragedy. Likewise, physical therapy is provided to patients enabling them to make their movements and daily activities better. This kind of therapy includes different kinds of exercises according to the requirements of the body of patients, positioning of limbs and so on (Field, et al, 2000). The usage of medicines, herbs and nutritional supplements are also employed for enabling the patients to heal for smaller burns. Surgery is also available for major burns and medicines are given along with surgical process. In medicines, there can be antimicrobial medicines, antibiotic medicines and painkillers. The patients are usually given injections of tetanus and analgesic drugs from mouth. Fluid usage is also increased. Physiotherapy is provided to the burn victim to enable him to exercise his normal day-to-day tasks and to make him capable to become mobile and improve his limb functionality. Herbs like Aloe Vera, Calendula and many others are also used for healing the burns and to reduce burn marks formation (Mandrekas, 1990). For minor injuries, the burn victim should be made to make use of herbs as they prove to very effective in healing the patient. However, for major injuries, proper therapeutic assistance should be taken from reliable resources. The burn victims should be provided with massage and physical therapy as a combination of these therapies enables the patient to control his health physically as well as psychologically (Field, et al, 2000). Massaging and physical movement exercises can help a person to carry his routine tasks without any problem. In addition, his limbs can be made to work normally. Pains can be reduced also with these two therapies. Therefore, physical and massage therapy are the best for burn victims and are provided by health care professionals. References Antoon, A. Y. and Donovan, D. K. (2004). Burn Injuries. Philadelphia, Pa: W.B. Saunders Company. pp. 330-337. Dyer, C. and Roberts, D. (1990). Thermal trauma. Nursing Clinics of North America 25, pp. 85-117. Field, T., Peck, M., Hernandez-Reif, M., Krugman, S., Burman, I., Ozment-Schenck, L. (2000). Postburn itching, pain, and psychological symptoms are reduced with massage therapy. Journal of Burn Care Rehabilitation 21, pp. 189-193. Mandrekas, A. (1990). Burns. Immediate Treatment. Athens: Argyriadis Publications. Read More