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  • Speech and language therapists and pathologists: they help the patient with swallowing issues, they can help with vocal cord issues, and communication needs (if the patient can’t speak) and they can help teach the patient with a tracheotomy how to speak.
  • Respiratory therapist: they manage and administer oxygen, breathing treatments and other respiratory needs. If the patient’s injury is severe; the patient might need breathing assistance with the aid of mechanical ventilator (see mechanical ventilator part I, II).
  • Dietitian: the dietitian develops a nutrition plan for the patient to promote wound healing and minimize weight loss, (see nutrition and burn).
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Taking care of a burned patient in a hospital requires a team effort. This team is called the burn team which is a group of people with different specialties who work together to help the patient and his/her family.

The members of the burn team with some variation from one hospital to another include:

  • The patient: you are the key member of the burn team, when you are admitted you may meet different members of the team. Each team member plays an important role in your recovery. As your condition improves, you will become more independent and will help set goals for your care. Make sure to ask the team about any concern that you have. Communication and understanding are very important.
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The skin plays an important role in body temperature regulation, see regulation of body temperature. In deep second degree and in third degree burns, the sweat glands will be destroyed and will not be replaced by new ones as the skin heals. These patients will often have difficulty in humid and hot situations (because of the destruction of sweat glands which play a role in regulating the body temperature).

These patients have to be careful and avoid certain exercise, activities or working conditions that might lead to heat stroke (heat stroke is an abnormally increased body temperature with accompanying physical and neurological symptoms). They are susceptible to heat stroke because the sweat glands are destroyed.

People with Partial thickness skin grafts may not fully recover sweat glands; this may cause problems with temperature regulation as well.

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Scars are areas of fibrous tissue that replace normal skin or other tissues after an injury. Scar formation is a natural part of the healing process.

Scars can happen as a result of an infection, surgery, injuries such as burns or inflammation of tissue. They may cause functional and psychological problems for patients.

There are three types of scar: Hypertrophic scar, keloid scar, and contracture scar.

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Skin plays an important role in protecting the body against infection; see skin and infection. When there is a burn the risk of infection increases depending on the degree of the burn, location of the burn and the general condition of the patient.

Risk factors for developing an infection in a burn wound may include:

  • Improper wound care.
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