Burns and scalds - children - Better Health Channel

A severe scald can cause a serious injury and may mean a long stay in hospital. It may also require painful skin grafts and years of treatment, and can result ... SkiptomaincontentSkinHomeSkinBurnsandscalds-childrenActionsforthispageListen Print SummaryReadthefullfactsheetKeephotdrinksandpothandlesoutofreachofchildren.Neverleavechildrenaloneinthebathroomorkitchen. Ifachildisburned,applyimmediatefirstaidbyplacingtheburnundercoolrunningwaterforaminimumof20minutes. Dialtriplezero(000)foranambulanceiftheinjuryissevere. Donotusebutter,oils,ointmentsoricetotreatburnsasthesecanfurtherdamagetheskin.Thebestwaytopreventscaldsinthebathroomistoreducethedeliverytemperatureofthehottapwateratthebasin,bathandshowerto50ºC.Bylaw,allnewhotwatersystemsnowhavethissetting. Therecommendedbathingtemperatureforyoungchildrenis37to38ºC.OnthispageCausesofburnsandscaldsTimeswheninjuriesarelikelytohappenPreventingburnsandscaldsinthebathroomTurnyourhotwaterdownPreventingburnsandscaldsinthekitchenFirstaidadviceforburnsWhatnottodoforburnsandscaldsHomesafetyandfirstaidadviceWheretogethelpChildrenarecuriousandliketoexploretheirsurroundings.Theydon’tknowthathotwaterandhotdrinkscancauseburns.Achild’ssensitiveskinburnsfarmoreeasilythanadultskin.  Burnsandscaldsareamajorcauseofseriousinjuryinchildrenfromnewbornto14yearsold.Childrenunderfouryears,especiallythoseagedbetweenoneandtwoyears,aremostatriskduetotheirincreasedmobilityandnaturalcuriosity. Aseverescaldcancauseaseriousinjuryandmaymeanalongstayinhospital.Itmayalsorequirepainfulskingraftsandyearsoftreatment,andcanresultinpermanentscarring.Aseverescaldoveralargeskinareacancausedeath.CausesofburnsandscaldsScaldsareburnsfromhotliquidsorsteam.Anyhotsubstancescanscaldachild. Treatallhotthingsasiftheyareasdangerousasfire.Infact,everydayitemsusedinandaroundthehousecausethemostburnandscaldinjuries. Theseinclude: hotdrinkssuchascupsofteaandcoffee waterfromsaucepans,kettles,jugs,billies,urnsandthermoseshotfoodsolidsandsaucepansofhotliquidcoalashesfrictionburns–forexample,treadmillsrunninghotwaterfromtaps,showersandbathwater lightersandmatchesfatandhotcookingoil steamandvapourvehicleexhausts. TimeswheninjuriesarelikelytohappenChildrenaremostatriskwhenyouare: inahurry,underalotofpressure,busyorhavetoomanythingsgoingonatthesametimeentertainingnotfeelingwelldistractedtired,orwhenyourchildistiredawayfromhome,visitingfriendsorfamily,oronholidayandoutofroutine.SettingaroutinecanhelpBetween4pmand7pmisabusytimeforfamilies,andit’seasytobecomedistractedbycompetingdemands.Settingaroutinecanhelptoreducetheriskofdistractionsthatmayleadtoburnsandscalds.Somesuggestionsinclude: Feedyourtoddlertheirmainmealatlunchtime,andservethemsomethinglightthatyoudon’tneedtocookintheearlyevening. Setbathtimeforyourbabyduringquietertimesduringthedaywhentherearefewercompetingdistractions.(Occasionally,youcangiveyourbabyawipeinsteadofabath.)Preparetheeveningmealearlierinthedaywhenyouarelesslikelytobedistractedbycompetingfamilydemands.PreventingburnsandscaldsinthebathroomThebathroomisoneofthemosthazardousroomsinthehouseforababyorchild.Scaldsandburnscanoccurthere,aswellasfalls,poisoninganddrowning.Mosthottapwaterscaldsoccurinthebathroom.  Thereareanumberofwaystoprotectyourchildagainstseriousinjuryinthebathroom.Somesuggestionsinclude: Useabaththermometertomakesurethebathwaterisalwaysasafeandcomfortabletemperature.Therecommendedwatertemperatureforbathingyoungchildrenisbetween37°Cand38°C.Alwaysturnthecoldwateronfirstwhenrunningabathandturnitofflasttocoolthespout.Non-slipsuctionminibathmatscanhelppreventfallsinthebath.Softbathspoutcoverscanhelptoreducetheriskofinjuryfromfallsandhelptopreventburnsandscalds.Keepthebathroomdoorclosedwhennotinuse.Youmaywishtoputalockorrestraintontheoutsideofthebathroomdoor(outofreachofchildren,butaccessibletoadultsincaseofemergency). Alwaysremainwithinarm’sreachofchildreninthebath.Takethechildwithyouifyouhavetoanswerthedoorortelephone.TurnyourhotwaterdownTheaveragedeliverytemperatureofdomestichotwateris70°C.Amuchsafertemperaturefordomestichotwateris50°C.Thisisbecausewateratalowertemperaturetakeslongertocauseinjury.Forexample: At60°C,ittakesonesecondforhotwatertocausethird-degreeburns.At55°C,ittakes10secondsforhotwatertocausethird-degreeburns.At50°C,ittakesfiveminutesforhotwatertocausethird-degreeburns.Toreducetheriskofinjurytoyourchildfromhotwaterscalds,itisrecommendedthatyouhaveadeviceinstalledtocontrolthedeliverytemperatureofbathroomhotwatertoamaximumof50°C.  TalktoyourLicensedorRegisteredPlumbingPractitioner whocanrecommendoptionsincluding: temperingvalves–thesearefittedtothewaterpipelineandmixhotandcoldwatertoaspecifictemperature,adjustablebetween35°Cand50°Chotwatershutdowndevices–thesearefittedtotheendofatapandautomaticallycutoffwaterflowoncethewaterreachesthepre-settemperature.Bylaw,allnewhotwatersystemsarenowrequiredtocomplywiththeVictorianPlumbingRegulations2018,whichlimithottapwatertonomorethan50°Cinbathroomsatthebasin,bathandshowerinnewhousesandnewrenovations.Theonlyexceptionstothisarepremisesintendedforchildrenandtheelderly,suchasearlychildhoodcentres,schoolsandnursinghomes.Thesehaveatemperaturelimitof45°C. Rememberthattherecommendedbathingtemperatureforyoungchildrenisbetween37°Cand38°C,socoldwaterstillneedstobemixedwithwaterfromthehottap.PreventingburnsandscaldsinthekitchenSomesimplestepsyoucantaketopreventburnsandscaldsinthekitcheninclude: Neverleavecookingunattended.Alwayssuperviseyourchildreninthekitchen.Keephotdrinksandhandlesoutofreachofchildren.Putyourbabydownsomewheresafeifyouaregoingtodrinksomethinghot.Usenon-slipplacematsinsteadoftablecloths.Installstoveandovenguards. Usethebackhotplatesofthestovebeforeusingthefrontonesandturnhandlesofsaucepansintowardsthebackofthestove,outofreachofsmallchildren.Keephotdrinksawayfromtheedgeofthetableorbenchand,wherepossible,useacupwithalid.Youneverknowwhenthebabywillbeabletoreachorwhenacrawlinginfantwillstarttotoddle.Makeitahabitfromthemomenttheyareborntokeephotdrinksoutoftheirreach.Nevercarryhotdrinkswhilechildrenareplayingunderfootorwhileholdingchildren.Makesureyourcareextendsoutsideyourhome,whenvisitingrelativesandfriendsorattendingplaygroups.Useacordlesskettletopreventachildpullingoverthekettle,ormakesurecordsarewellawayfromtheedge.Emptyanyunusedwateroutofthekettleafterboiling.Givetoddlerstheirownspecialmugsotheydon’tdrinkfromanadultmugorcup,whichmaycontainliquidthatistoohot.Carryplatestopots,notpotstoplates.Servecolddrinkswhenchildrenarepresentandhaveateabreakwhentheyaresleeping.Yourtoddlermaybesaferintheplaypenorinthehighchairforashorttimewhenyouareverybusyinthekitchen,oryoucoulduseachildsafetygatetorestrictaccesstothekitchen.ReadmoreaboutpreventingburnsinChildsafetyinjuryandprevention.FirstaidadviceforburnsStoptheburningprocesswhileconsideringyourownsafetyby: Ifyourchild’sclothingisonfire,getthemto:  stoprunningdroptothefloorcovertheirfacewiththeirhandsrollonthefloortoputthefireout.Ifsomeone’sclothesareonfireandtheycan’tstop,drop,coverorroll(suchasababyoryoungchild),extinguishtheflameswithawoollenblanket.Ifthesourceoftheburniselectrical–donottouchthepersonwhiletheyarestillincontactwiththecurrent.Turnoffthecurrentattheswitch.Ifthesourceoftheburnischemical–removetheburningagentandwashwithcoolwaterfor20minutes.Donotallowthechemicalagenttotouchyourskin.Immediatefirstaidwillreducetheseverityofaburn.Ifsomeonehasreceivedaburn: Removeanyclothingorjewelleryneartheburn,unlessitisstucktotheskin.Applycoolrunningwater(noticeoricedwater)totheburnforatleast20minutes(usefulforuptothreehoursaftertheburn).Keepthechildwarmbyplacingablanketontheunburntareas.Covertheburnusingacleandressing,acleansheet,acleannon-fluffytowel/teatowelorclingfilm.Iftheburnissevereorspreadoveralargearea,keepthechildwarmandcalm,anddialtriplezero(000)tocallanambulance.Burnsthatinvolvetheface,hands,feet,genitalsorbottom,orthatarelargerthanatwenty-centpiece,requireurgentmedicalattention.Readaboutwhattodoifachemicalburnaffectssomeone’seyes.WhatnottodoforburnsandscaldsIfachildisburned,thereareafewthingsyoushouldnotdo,including: Neverusebutter,oilsorointmentstocovertheburn,astheymayretaintheheatandmaketheinjuryworse.Neveruseiceoricedwaterasthiscanmaketheburninjuryworseandalsocausethechild’sbodytemperaturetodrop.HomesafetyandfirstaidadviceTheRoyalChildren’sHospitalCommunityInformationteam(formerlySafetyCentre)inMelbourneholdsfirstaidcoursesforthepublic.Thesix-hourpaediatricemergencycarecourseisparticularlyhelpfulforparents,grandparents,nanniesandchildcareproviders.YoucanalsocontacttheCommunityInformationtelephonelineon(03)93455085foradviceplansandsafetyproductstoreducetheriskofburninjuriesinyourhome. OtherorganisationsthatofferfirstaidtraininginVictoriainclude:StJohnAmbulanceAustralia(Victoria)AustralianRedCrossLifeSavingVictoria.Youcanalsochoosetosearchforafirstaidtrainingproviderinyourarea.WheretogethelpCommunityInformation(formerlySafetyCentre)telephoneline,TheRoyalChildren’sHospitalTel.(03)93455085KidsHealthInfofactsheets,TheRoyalChildren’sHospital KidsafeVictoria Tel.(03)90362306Hardwareandbathroomsuppliers AqualifiedplumberorgasfitterSafety:aroundthehome,2018,TheRoyalChildren’sHospital,Melbourne. Burns–preventionandfirstaid,2018,TheRoyalChildren’sHospital,Melbourne. Thispagehasbeenproducedinconsultationwithandapproved by: Thispagehasbeenproducedinconsultationwithandapproved by: GivefeedbackaboutthispageWasthispagehelpful?YesNoViewallskinMoreinformationRelatedinformationAbdominalpaininadults Thetypeofpainfeltintheabdomencanvarygreatly. Abdominalpaininchildren Childrenmayfeelstomachpainforarangeofreasonsandmayneedtreatment Afteraflood–animalandinsectrelatedhazards Whenreturningtoaflood-affectedarea,rememberthatwildanimals,includingrats,mice,snakesorspiders,maybetrappedinyourhome,shedorgarden. Afteraflood–returninghomesafely Whenreturningtoyourhomeafteraflood,takeprecautionstoreducethepossibilityofinjury,illnessordisease. After-hourshealthcareoptions Forunexpectedafter-hoursmedicalissues,therearetelephonehelplines,pharmacies,after-hoursmedicalclinicsordoctorswhocanvisityouathome. SupportgroupsCFA-EarlyFireSafeProgramFromotherwebsitesChildandYouthHealthSA-Firstaid-burns.TheChildHealth&SafetyResourceCentre(CHAS)Melbourne-ParentingBooksandHomeSafetyProductsTheRoyalChildren’sHospital,SafetyCentre,Melbourne-FireSafetyTheRoyalChildren’sHospital,SafetyCentre,Melbourne-FirstAidTraining Thispagehasbeenproducedinconsultationwithandapproved by: ContentdisclaimerContentonthiswebsiteisprovidedforinformationpurposesonly.Informationaboutatherapy,service,productortreatmentdoesnotinanywayendorseorsupportsuchtherapy,service,productortreatmentandisnotintendedtoreplaceadvicefromyourdoctororotherregisteredhealthprofessional.Theinformationandmaterialscontainedonthiswebsitearenotintendedtoconstituteacomprehensiveguideconcerningallaspectsofthetherapy,productortreatmentdescribedonthewebsite.Allusersareurgedtoalwaysseekadvicefromaregisteredhealthcareprofessionalfordiagnosisandanswerstotheirmedicalquestionsandtoascertainwhethertheparticulartherapy,service,productortreatmentdescribedonthewebsiteissuitableintheircircumstances.TheStateofVictoriaandtheDepartmentofHealth shallnotbearanyliabilityforreliancebyanyuseronthematerialscontainedonthiswebsite. Reviewedon:08-07-2019