It is a surgical procedure which involves the placement of a piece of healthy skin in areas where the skin is damaged. It is usually done in an operating room under local or general anesthesia depending on the size of the graft.
Skin grafts can be classified into:
When a person is burned and depending on the severity of burn, the blood vessels including the capillaries may be affected. Combined with the release of chemical substances into the blood, this will lead to increased capillary permeability to fluids, leading to the leaking of fluids from the blood vessels into the tissues. The higher the percentage of burned skin, the more severe the loss of fluid will be and the greater the dehydration will be.
Fluid replacement is one of the important objectives in the initial treatment of burned patients. The amount of fluid needed and the method of fluid given depends on the surface area of the skin burned as well as other factors. There are many formulas used for fluid resuscitation; one of them is called the Parklund Formula in which after the amount of fluids is calculated, it is given through an IV route and the type of fluid is usually Ringer Lactate. Urine output (0.5 ml/kg/hour in adult and 1 ml/kg/hour in children) is one of the methods used to evaluate adequate fluid resuscitation.
One of the important components of burn care is nutritional support, nutrition is important for the recovery and healing process of a burned patient. After a burn injury and depending on the severity, the body reacts by increase production of certain hormones which will cause the body to need more nutrition accompanied sometimes with alteration in the carbohydrate, protein and fat breakdown.
There are many ways to assess the nutritional needs of the patient taking into consideration the age, body weight, the percentage of body surface burned, and other factors. The Curreri formula is used for adults and children, Harris-Benedict formula is used for adults and the Galvaston formula used for children. Dietitians and doctors will assess, monitor, and adjust nutrition frequently as patients condition improves or deteriorates.
There are different ways of delivering these nutrients to the patient, depending on the burn and the patient’s condition. The patient may be fed by mouth, through the veins, the intestinal tract through a tube or a combination of more than one method.
Protection from sunburn:
Is reddening of the skin occurring after exposure to the sun or other ultraviolet light. It happens when the amount of sun exposure exceeds the ability of the body to protect the skin. The body protects the skin through melanin pigment which acts like an umbrella that covers the skin. Sunburn is a burn which is most commonly a first degree burn part I, II, more severe or deep sunburns can lead to second degree burns with the formation of blisters and rarely third degree burns part I, II. Very light skinned people can have sunburns in less than 15 minutes of exposure to midday sun while dark skinned people may tolerate the same exposure for hours.
Symptoms:
Symptoms of sunburn typically don’t develop until about 2-6 hours after sun exposure, while in children it happens as little as 15-30 minutes after being exposed to the sun without adequate protection.
Types of malignant melanoma:
Malignant melanoma is a serious skin cancer affecting the melanocytes. Melanocytes are cells located at the base of the epidermis (see the skin). They are responsible for producing Melanin which is a protein that gives color to the skin, eyes and hair. In the skin melanin pigment acts as an umbrella that absorbs and protects the skin from the effect of ultraviolet radiation. The more melanin produced by melanocyes, the darker the skin.
Malignant melanoma known also as melanoma happens when melanocytes begin to grow in an uncontrollable way. It can happen at all ages but it’s more common in young adults and the risk increases with age. Although anyone can be affected, there are certain risk factors that increase the risk of having malignant melanoma and these risk factors include:
Also called Skin cancer-basal cell, Rodent ulcer
It is the most common type of skin cancer. It originates from the basal cells of the epidermis (see the skin). It occurs more often in men than women and used to be more common after the age of 40 but it is more and more being seen in younger people. Ultraviolet light exposure from sun or other source is the main predisposing factor for developing BCC and that is why the majority occur on sun exposed areas such as face, neck and ear but they can also occur in areas which are not exposed to sunlight.
Certain risk factors increase the risk of basal cell carcinoma which may include:
The skin like other organs in the body can be affected by cancer. Skin cancer is an abnormal and uncontrolled growth of skin cells that can be divided into three types:
Hydrotherapy is the external use of water in the medical treatment of certain diseases. Most burn units in hospitals have hydrotherapy rooms. Hydrotherapy softens and removes dead tissue enabling new healthy tissue to form and promote healing.
Hydrotherapy can have other effects in addition to removing dead and damaged tissue, it can:
