What to do if I am burned by boiling water

1

Before a boiling water burn it is very important to act quickly while assessing the damage. If it’s about minor burns We can act and heal the injury with some homemade measures, but in the case of more serious injuries it will be essential to perform some first aid and then go to a doctor.

Determining what type of burn you have and recognizing its severity is the first step that you must carry out while performing basic first aid care on the injury, to do so we invite you to read our articles on how to know if a burn is first degree, second degree degree or third degree in order to quickly detect the severity of the damage.

2

If you you burn with boiling water the first thing you should do is apply plenty of cold water in the area for at least 10 minutes. Under no circumstances apply any type of cream or ointment before this step, which will be essential to refresh the burned area and promote proper healing.

While you refresh the injury is a good time to assess the damage of the burn and ask yourself if it is necessary to see a doctor or if you can treat it at home. Remember that for deep or very extensive burns it is recommended to go to the emergency room.

3

Once you have cooled the area and reduced the burning of the burn, it is recommended apply a wet bandage in injury. If you have sterilized gauze much better, but in case you do not have it, you can use a clean sheet or cloth that you have on hand. Moisten it and gently bandage the affected area, let the bandage act between 30 minutes and 1 hour.

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If it is a superficial burnOnce we have treated the area as described above, we can resort to applying a cream or natural remedy.You can purchase a special over-the-counter lotion for burns at the pharmacy or resort to a wonderful natural remedy: aloe vera. Cut an aloe leaf, open it in the middle and remove the pulp, which you should apply to the lesion at least 3 times a day with the skin always clean.

If you prefer to opt for other natural alternatives, we invite you to consult our article on how to heal burns with home remedies.

5

If the burn has been considerable and some clothing fabric has been adhered to the injury, it is important do not take it off. In this case, the area should be wetted with cold water and, after bandaging the burn, go to a health care facility so that a specialist can treat the injury.

In the event that the boiling water burn has a blister You should not explode it either, this will only bring with it a greater injury and a possible scar. If the blister is very extensive, it is recommended to see a doctor so that the specialist treats it, in the case that it is small you should apply the cream or home remedy in the area delicately and wait for it to drain on its own.

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All these measures are useful to treat mild boiling water burns, however it is very important to recognize when they are second or third degree to go to a specialist as soon as possible.

It is recommended to follow the first two steps recommended in this article and go immediately to the emergency room when:

• The burn is larger than the size of the palm of a hand.
• If the injury is in areas such as the face, genitals or legs.
• When after the burn there is a very intense pain and burning.
• If the affected person goes into a state of shock after the injury or if a fever develops.

This article is merely informative, at oneHOWTO we do not have the power to prescribe any medical treatment or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.

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