Articles Posted in Wound Infection

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In October 2006, Camryn Higgins suffered second- and third-degree burns to 65 percent of his body in an accidental backyard explosion at his Bastrop, Texas home. It was a Sunday morning, and he and his family was cleaning up after a seventh birthday party for Camryn the day before. His father was getting ready to light the grill for some outdoor cooking. Camryn, carrying a few chairs, also grabbed a lighter to take to his dad. But he tripped on a sidewalk and fell, and somehow the lighter emitted a spark. This ignited fumes from a nearby gas can.

“The backyard was full of smoke and I started hollering, ‘Where’s my baby, where’s my baby?'” recalled Carl Higgins. “Finally he ran in front of me, and I noticed that he was on fire.”

Emergency crews blocked traffic on a nearby highway and a medical helicopter landed to get the child to the Burn Center at Shriners Hospital for Children, in Galveston. Camryn was put on life support and doctors worried he would not survive. But several days later, the boy awoke to his astonished and deeply worried parents. Then the recovery had to begin–which included very painful baths to keep him from getting life-threatening infections.

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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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