Burns

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Summary

A burn is damage to your body's tissues caused by heat, chemicals, electricity, sunlight, or radiation. Scalds from hot liquids and steam, building fires and flammable liquids and gases are the most common causes of burns. Another kind is an inhalation injury, caused by breathing smoke.

There are three types of burns:

First-degree burns damage only the outer layer of skin
Second-degree burns damage the outer layer and the layer underneath
Third-degree burns damage or destroy the deepest layer of skin and tissues underneath

Burns can cause swelling, blistering, scarring and, in serious cases, shock, and even death. They also can lead to infections because they damage your skin's protective barrier. Treatment for burns depends on the cause of the burn, how deep it is, and how much of the body it covers. Antibiotic creams can prevent or treat infections. For more serious burns, treatment may be needed to clean the wound, replace the skin, and make sure the patient has enough fluids and nutrition.

NIH: National Institute of General Medical Sciences

Start Here

Burns (American College of Emergency Physicians)

Diagnosis and Tests

Burn Evaluation (National Library of Medicine) Also in Spanish

Prevention and Risk Factors

Burn and Scald Prevention (United States Fire Administration) - PDF
Preventing Burns in Your Home (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Treatments and Therapies

Aloe Vera (National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health)
Blisters: First Aid (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Hyperbaric Oxygen Therapy (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Skin graft - series (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
What Do I Need in My First Aid Kit? (American Academy of Family Physicians) Also in Spanish

Related Issues

How to Help a Person with a Serious Burn Injury (Phoenix Society for Burn Survivors)

Specifics

Avoiding Injuries from Super-Heated Water in Microwave Ovens (Food and Drug Administration)
Chemical Burns: First Aid (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Electrical Burns: First Aid (Mayo Foundation for Medical Education and Research) Also in Spanish
Fireworks Safety (National Fire Protection Association) Also in Spanish
Scald Burns (Burn Institute) - PDF

Videos and Tutorials

Burn Prevention for Families with Children with Special Needs (Safe Kids Worldwide)

Statistics and Research

Burn Incidence and Treatment in the U.S. (American Burn Association)
Fire and Burn Injuries Among Children in 2020 (Safe Kids Worldwide) - PDF

Clinical Trials

ClinicalTrials.gov: Burns (National Institutes of Health)

Journal Articles References and abstracts from MEDLINE/PubMed (National Library of Medicine)

Find an Expert

American College of Emergency Physicians

Children

Burn Safety Awareness on Playgrounds: Thermal Burns from Playground Equipment (Consumer Product Safety Commission) - PDF
Burn Treatment & Prevention Tips for Families (American Academy of Pediatrics) Also in Spanish
Burns (For Parents) (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish
First Aid: Burns (Nemours Foundation) Also in Spanish

Patient Handouts

Burns (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Chemical burn or reaction (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Minor burns - aftercare (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish
Skin graft (Medical Encyclopedia) Also in Spanish

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MEDICAL ENCYCLOPEDIA

National Institutes of Health

The primary NIH organization for research on Burns is the National Institute of General Medical Sciences

NIH MedlinePlus Magazine

When Getting Warm Goes Wrong: How to Prevent and Treat Burns

Disclaimers

MedlinePlus links to health information from the National Institutes of Health and other federal government agencies. MedlinePlus also links to health information from non-government Web sites. See our disclaimer about external links and our quality guidelines.

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