Burns are skin lesions, its annexes and to the muscles and tendons in the body. These are produced by physical and chemical agents in various forms. Most can be caused by fire, sunlight, chemicals, liquids or hot objects, steam, electricity and even by other factors. These injuries can cause medical problems ranging from minor to endangering life, according to the breadth and depth of the burn.
Heat burns involve tissue heating occurs on a level where their irreversible damage. The tissue damage is proportional to the heat content of the burning agent, exposure time and heat conductivity of the tissues involved. The skin on our body, has a high specific heat conductivity with low heat radiation, therefore, the skin becomes hot quickly and cools slowly. As a result, thermal injury persists after the agent has lapsed or been removed.
In the case of chemical burns these result from the action of corrosive substances that destroy tissue at the contact point. The body parts most commonly affected are the skin, eyes and digestive tract. The products can be corrosive acids or alkalis.
A specific characteristic of burns caused by chemicals is that the tissue destruction is progressive. Acids tend to be neutralized by the tissues exposed, but continue to act alkalis, unless they are neutralized by other means.
Tags: Burns, burns caused by chemicals, characteristic of burns, Chemical Burns, Heat Burns
