it burns.

LewieP

I just got hot pizza straight from the oven all over my hands, and now all over most of my left hand and some of my right hand hurts like hell. It was the tomato sauce that got all over it, I dropped a slice as I was cutting and my instinct was to catch it...

Anyway, is there anything I can do to stop it hurting, or anything I should be doing to help it heal?

Technicality

Ice, or run it under the cold tap. Thats what I usually do anyway.

Thanatos

Yeah, cold tapwater is the way to go. After you do that for two or three minutes, put some Cortisone on it.

ben0207

Rinse it under cold water for twenty minutes, and it should be okay. If you're lucky it might blister hideously.

If it still hurts, smash your shin into a coffee table. This always works.


<==used to work in a chip shop, and so has suffered some tuly hideous burns. Once submerged entire right hand in 193 degree oil.

Deadfall

Former cook here, so I'm pretty familiar with burns.

I never run it under something cold. I don't know why, but it always seemed to make it worse for me.

A few cook's tricks I learned was to cut a slice of tomato and hold that on the burn. Soy sauce works too. Don't ask me why, but they always helped me when I was in the kitchen and needed some fast burn relief.

ihmmy

cold water right after you burn your skin
aloe vera on it afterward to soothe if there's continued pain (aloe vera is pretty sweet stuff, good to keep a little tube of it in your medicine cabinet... stuff is -amazing- on sunburns)

liquidlogan

First-aid course I took says to run it under cold water until the burning stop. Then, if you want, first make sure the burning sensation stops, and then you can put an ointment on it. If you don't wait, all its going to do is keep the heat in and that isn't good.

Lewisham

Deadfall wrote: »

Former cook here, so I'm pretty familiar with burns.

I never run it under something cold. I don't know why, but it always seemed to make it worse for me.

I heard (can't give you a source) that cold water shocks the skin, and is more likely to make it blister than just running it under moderately warm water. That might be why.

Nibble

You're supposed to use room-temperature water for frost bite, so I suppose it would be the same for burns.

Dizzen

I believe the reason you do use use hot water for frostbite, is that the heating up the area too quickly can cause injury to the frostbitten area. You want to gradually warm up the area, and since it'll be numb, it's best to err on the side of caution than to heat it up too fast.

Using cold water for a burn doesn't have the same danger, and it helps remove heat, slightly numb the pain, and decrease swelling. There are some dangers to using ice, so I wouldn't recommend it, but I know some people who swear by it regardless, so YMMV.

An anti-inflammatory medicine (ie Aspirin) can also help with pain and swelling, assuming you don't have any allergies or conditions that would prohibit consuming such a thing.

LewieP's Mummy

I once got a phone call from LewieP saying " I'm at the bus stop on my way back from hospital, I'm fine, just got thrown across the room by an electric shock of a faultily wired heater, been on a heart monitor for 3 hours"...

and another call saying"I've just got back from hospital, I stabbed myself trying to cut the cable ties off a nerf gun with a knife. It bled everywhere, and I needed stitches"...

Now, he burns himself ...

The Black Hunter

Never run it under really cold water, the temp difference can actually do some damage, you want cool water, straight from a running tap.

Tav

LewiePs Mummy wrote: »

I once got a phone call from LewieP saying " I'm at the bus stop on my way back from hospital, I'm fine, just got thrown across the room by an electric shock of a faultily wired heater, been on a heart monitor for 3 hours"...

and another call saying"I've just got back from hospital, I stabbed myself trying to cut the cable ties off a nerf gun with a knife. It bled everywhere, and I needed stitches"...

Now, he burns himself ...

You let him live by himself? Some mother you are :P

LewieP

You don't even know about this one

Cheers for the advice guys, its cooled down now, but still hurts, I'll get some antiseptic on it.

Gihgehls

I think it is awesome that your mom posted here, to make fun of you.

Theungry

Lewisham wrote: »

Deadfall wrote: »

Former cook here, so I'm pretty familiar with burns.

I never run it under something cold. I don't know why, but it always seemed to make it worse for me.

I heard (can't give you a source) that cold water shocks the skin, and is more likely to make it blister than just running it under moderately warm water. That might be why.

Its probably too late now, but don't use cold water if you can help it. Cold water will numb the pain for a little while, but it will ultimately make your skin take much longer to heal because it is contracting the blood vessels that need to be supplying blood and oxygen at the most critical time in your healing process as well as irritating your skin further. For future reference, the best thing to do is wash with room temperature water and soap thoroughly and then apply solarcaine/aloe/burn relief goo of your choice. If you don't have any of those on hand, it can be soothing to apply a damp soft towel, re-wetting every few minutes. Just try not to use cold water. Its short term relief + long term pain.

LewieP's Mummy

I missed off the phone call from Sri Lanka (he lived there for 3 months) saying he'd just been bitten by a rabid dog

And yes, I do let him live on his own, crazy, I know.

Sir Red of the Manti

I was always taught that if a burn was hot enough that it would continue to cause cell damage due to skin being able to retain heat fairly well, hence why cold water is recommended to negate the process rather than just being a way to numb pain. Is it better to attempt to halt the burning process as quickly as possible, or is bloodflow to the burn site more important? I suppose blood circulation would help to remove heat from the site, but I didn't think it'd be faster than immediate cold water.