Injuries: What You Don’t Know Will Hurt You

Merck has a comprehensive overview on burns, including information on smoke inhalation. There are also photographs for the various burns, and a graphic showing how doctors estimate the extent of a burn on the body.

WebMD explains the different types of burns and how you should deal with each one. It not only mentions first-, second- and third-degree, but touches upon heat, electrical, chemical, radiation, and friction burns. There is also a section on children and burns.

Sick! V1 explains the main facts you should know about burns. This site can be particularly useful because it has a section entitled “Burns and Scalds: Words to Know,” and it has a graphic of the skin, so you can see which layers of the skin are affected by each degree of burn. The bottom of the page lists some books and organizations you can contact for more information. Take note that the links at the top of the article are ads.

The National Institute of General Medical Sciences presents this fact sheet listing the national statistics in the U.S. associated with burns. The fact sheet details forms of trauma, which includes burns. There is also a section just for burns, noting facts such as this one: about 10,000 Americans die each year from infections associated with burns.

SixWise.com details “The Top 10 Causes of Serious Burns to People and Pets in the Home,” which include curling irons and radiators.

eMedicine.com reviews the symptoms associated with chemical burns. The site notes that chemical burns might appear small, but they might actually cause severe damage to tissues.

Brigham and Women’s Hospital reviews what exactly an electrical burn is, explaining causes, treatments, and prevention.

Advances in Wound Care provides this piece about a different method for diagnosing burns other than the first-, second-, and third-degree standard. The article covers the spectrum of diagnostic options, such as the Rule of Nines and the Lund and Browder Chart. The article settles on using the thickness of burned skin to diagnose severity.

The Mayo Clinic provides a first-aid guide for treating a burn. It is short enough that you can memorize the general guidelines in the case of an emergency. The Mayo Clinic tells you what to do for first-, second-, and third-degree burns.

Kids Health has similar information to the Mayo Clinic but it is geared toward parents who need to watch over young children. This also goes into first-, second-, and third-degree burns, and covers more specific situations, such as flame, electrical, and chemical burns. For prevention, there is a helpful section suggesting what parents should do to make the bathroom, kitchen, dining room, and car safer. 

The University of Maryland Medical Center sheds light on a number of different burn treatments. You’ll find general information about burns, but if you scroll to the “Treatment” section, you’ll see information about medications such as ointments and antibiotics. There is also information on surgery, nutritional supplements, herbs, acupuncture, massage and physical therapy, homeopathy, and “mind-body medicine,” such as hypnotism.

Children’s Hospital of the King’s Daughters has this bullet-point list of what you should do to prevent fires or any potential burns. There are about 30 suggestions here, including lowering the water-heater temperature to 120˚F, and teaching children to wear shoes during the summer.