Burns

A burn is an incidental wound caused by events ranging from radiological exposures, chemical exposures, electricity, friction or exposure to extreme temperate such as those caused by fire, boiling liquids or even cold.

Burns are generally characterized by degree of damage to the skin with 1st degree being the least severe and 4th degree being the most severe.  Degrees refers to the depth through which damage from the burn occurred.  A first degree burn is the most superficial, affecting only the uppermost layer of skin, while a fourth degree burn complete penetrates the skin and involves deeper tissues such as muscles, tendons, bones, or other internal organs.

In addition to the degree of the burn, the amount of coverage over the body’s surface is also used to describe the severity of the burn, so that a 2nd degree burn to a small part of the body may have less severe consequences than a 1st degree burn over a large part of the body.

An example of the way that percentage coverage of the burn can be used is that one percent of a person’s body is commonly assumed to approximate the size of the person’s palm.  A person with a sunburn on their back might be said to have a 1st (or 2nd) degree burn over 15-20% of their body.