Burned with iron, HELP!!!?!
Question:
Burned with iron, HELP!!!?
I burned my arm last night when I accidentally bumped into an iron. The skin turned waxy at first and then it progressively got worse. Now, the very middle has risen up and looks like a blister filled with pus and the skin immediately around it is darker in color...almost leathery looking. I don't know what to do and I don't even know what degree burn it is. It's just on my arm and its such a little burn but I don't want it to scar and I want to take care of it.
Answers:
It is a SECOND degree burn.
Easiest way to tend to it is to go to a walk-in clinic and ask for treatment. It will likely involve ointments, gauze and bandage rolls, along with some (mild) pain meds. The key to the degree of the burn is the fluid build-up in the blister. This means it is more than simply a superficial burn...it has gone to the deeper layers of the skin, although it has likely not killed the skin in the area.
Since it is a second degree burn, I have to assume you were in contact with the iron for more than a few seconds - hard to do from bumping something. If this was caused by application, and you are not the one who applied it...that is called domestic or spousal abuse, and that is a one way street leading to more pain and possibly death. If this is true...leave the situation and do NOT return to it.
As to the scar formation...sorry to tell you, but second degree burns almost always leave scars. However, you can take steps to reduce the likelihood of it being a big nasty scar by proper medical treatment, with antibiotics and the right skin conditioning cremes, you can minimize the size of the scar.