What is a Burn?
Medically, a burn is the loss of vitality of the skin due to high heat. Depending on the intensity of the heat or the duration of contact, the superficial, middle, and deep layers of the skin can be burned and become necrotic.
Burns can also occur in a home environment as a result of contact with hot water or steam, contact with hot solid objects, contact with chemical substances such as acid/alkali, the effect of electric current, or radiation. Burns caused by heat, electricity, radiation, friction, and freezing are physical, while burns caused by acid and alkali substances are chemical.
Why Do Burns Hurt More Than Other Wounds?
There are numerous sensory nerves in the superficial and middle layers of the skin. These nerves, which regulate our contact with the outside world, are very sensitive. Burns stimulate these nerves, leading to severe pain.
What are the Types of Burns?
The severity of burns increases proportionally with their depth. Very superficial burns are called first-degree burns. Sunburns are an example of these. They manifest as redness and pain in the skin. First-degree burns heal spontaneously within a few days. Slightly deeper burns are called second-degree burns. Here, only the superficial layers of the skin are burned, and the underlying layers are intact. Second-degree burns manifest as fluid-filled blisters (medically known as bullae) on the skin. They are painful. The most severe burns are third-degree burns. In these cases, the entire skin is burned, and skin grafting is required for healing.
Determining the depth of burns is a specialist’s job. Therefore, it is recommended that individuals with severe burns immediately consult a burn center or a hospital experienced in this field and not attempt to treat themselves.
Points to Consider in Burn First Aid: Applying cold water compresses to burn patients is soothing. Prolonged ice compresses can be harmful, and in cases of electrical burns, water should never be used to intervene with the patient. The fluid-filled blisters that form after a burn contain protein-rich fluid and are responsible for protecting the dead layer and the tissues immediately beneath it; they should never be burst.
Applying substances commonly used among the public, such as toothpaste, yogurt, or olive oil, does not contribute to burn healing and increases the risk of infection. Burned areas (except for electrical shock burns) should be held under cold water, and creams recommended by a doctor that relieve pain, aid tissue healing, and have antiseptic properties should be applied. For more advanced burns, treatment is applied according to the degree of the burn. Silicone gel, pressure bandages, and corsets are used to minimize scarring as much as possible.
Method for Recreating Skin Lost Due to Burns
In the past, if a very large part of the body was burned in fresh burns, it was difficult to find healthy skin to cover these areas. In recent years, thanks to advances in tissue engineering, new skin can be created in laboratory conditions using cells taken from healthy skin of patients, and these unhealed burn wounds can be closed with this new skin.
For many years, medicine remained inadequate in treating the severe scars left by burn wounds. The burn treatment method developed by Prof. Dr. Onur Erol, involving laser and stem cell-enriched fat tissue injection, has made an international impact in the field of medicine and offered new hope to patients.
In this method, the tense and hard-looking new skin is softened by injecting stem cell-enriched fat tissue into the burn scars (nedbeler) softened with Fraxel laser, and an effort is made to bring the post-burn skin as close as possible to other healthy tissues in terms of color and volume.
Treatment Methods According to Burn Types
A burn is a serious event and can result in death or sequelae if not treated appropriately. First-degree burns are very superficial and can heal in a few days even without any treatment. However, second and third-degree burns must be treated.
In burn healing, not only the depth but also how much and where on the body the burn affects is important. Hand, face, and genital area burns should ideally be treated with hospitalization, as sequelae in these areas can severely negatively impact life. For example, while a second-degree burn of 4-5 cm in diameter can be treated with ointments on an outpatient basis, a second-degree burn of the same depth covering one-third of the body is life-threatening and must be treated with hospitalization, fluid therapy, and special nutritional support. In third-degree burns, since the entire skin is burned, they often require treatment with skin grafts in the hospital.
Is Treatment Possible for Very Old Burn Scars?
Yes, a certain degree of success can be achieved in treatments using advanced laser applications, depending on the condition of the burn scar. Additionally, the quality of burned skin is improved with stem cell-enriched fat injections, a treatment developed by Prof. Dr. Onur Erol.
