Essentially the aims of first aid are to:

 

•         Halt the process of burning,

•         Cool the burn,

•         Cover the burn,

•         Provide Pain relief

 

You should always assess environmental safety, and your own safety before attempting any first aid.

 

When electricity is involved, disconnect the source before attempting any first aid. The current must be switched off before using Burnshield, as the solution is water based and will conduct electricity.

 

 

Flames on the body should be smothered with a blanket or doused with water. Burnshield’s Fire/Trauma Blanket is ideal to use for this purpose, as it is saturated with Burnshield Hydrogel, providing optimum cooling and relief without risk of excessive cooling. It is made from pure new wool, and has been saturated with tea tree gel before sterilization and packing.

 

Contains:

Pure wool base Water (96%)    Melaleuca Alt. (Tea Tree)

Gelling agent                 Sterilized by gamma irradiation

ISO 9001 EN 46001  CE accredited

 

The blanket is wool woven into a specially designed inter-linking cellular structure, using pure new wool with the technical assistance of the C.S.I.R. and the Wool Board.

 

The Burnshield blanket can be used in hospitals, schools, industry, restaurants, laundries, garages and other locations where fire risk may occur.

 

If these are unavailable, the victim should be rolled on the ground, taking care to avoid injury to yourself.

 

Active cooling removes heat and prevents progression of the burn if done within 20 minutes of the injury occurring.

 

Burnshield dressings have the tremendous ability to absorb and dissipate heat, providing pain relief, and minimizing further skin damage and shock.

 

Burnshield’s cooling and soothing effect comes from its specially formulated hydrogel which is non toxic and non irritant. The antibacterial agent is Melaleuca Alternifolia (Tea Tree Oil) and is completely safe for use on children.

 

Clothes should be removed as soon as possible, as they retain heat, and prolong the burning process. Material that is likely to stick to the skin (eg nylon) should be left in place.

 

Burnshield dressings actually facilitate the removal of burnt clothing. They are easy to apply, non-adhesive and simple to remove without further trauma to the patient.

 

Chemical burns should be irrigated with lots of water for a minimum of 20 minutes before applying Burnshield. Again, contaminated clothing should be removed. Certain industrial chemicals require specific treatments.

 

Hydrofluoric acid causes a continuing, penetrating injury, and must be neutralized with calcium gluconate applied topically, or injected into the affected tissues.

 

Chromic acid and dichromate salts should be rinsed with dilute sodium hyposulphite.

 

Burns from alkali products are more severe than those from acidic products, as they penetrate deeper. Litmus paper can be used to confirm the removal of alkali or acid.

 

Eye injuries should be thoroughly irrigated with eyewash.

 

Tar burns should be cooled and covered with Burnshield dressings or water, but the tar itself should be left in place.

Dressings should cover the whole of the burn area. By simply placing the Burnshield dressing over the damaged area, it instantly shields and protects the wound against further contamination and infection. Fluid loss is kept to a minimum, and so the potential for shock is reduced.

 

Its instant protection makes it the ideal choice for the emergency care of superficial to full thickness burns. Any burn, whether received from open flames, scalding from hot water, steam, gas, chemicals or electrical appliances can be treated immediately with Burnshield.

 

Professional medical attention must be received as soon as possible, as Burnshield provides primary care only.

 

Burnshield dressings are made up of a special, soft elastic poly foam sheet, non-toxic, having no fibres to contaminate a wound. This no residue foam retains the gel, and when covering a burn it is sufficiently elastic to accommodate the possibility of swelling and flexing of joints. 

 

Each dressing is saturated with the sterile water-based gel. The non-adhesive moist gel impedes bonding of the dressing to the wound and thereby facilitates easy removal of the dressing for medical attention to be received. To remove the gel – rinse the area lightly with cold water.

 

If the dressing is soiled due to the nature of the burn or showing signs of drying out, replace with a new sterile dressing, or re-hydrate with Burnshield Hydrogel.

 

Exposition of nerve endings will cause pain. Application of a Burnshield dressing will both cool and cover the exposed burn providing instant relief.

 

Prevention of scarring should be the primary aim of burn management, starting from the time of injury.

 

Hypertrophic scarring results from the build up of excess collagen fibres during wound healing, establishing themselves in non uniform patterns. The result is a ‘swollen’ looking scar.

 

Keloid scarring extends beyond the boundry of the initial injury, and is more frequently seen in people with pigmented skin.

 

A recent study has shown that the use of Burnshield may significantly reduce the incidence of both types of scarring.

 

NEW YORK (Reuters Health) Jan 24 2006 reports that repeated applications of Burnshield dressings on cutaneous burns reduces pain and promotes healing with minimal scarring of cutaneous burns.

 

A study by Enzo Osti of the San Dona di Piave of Venice, Italy, published in the January 2006 issue of the Archives of Surgery, shows that the Burnshield hydrogel results in "a considerable reduction in wound maceration during therapy and good pain control" in a two-year follow-up study involving 44 burn patients.

 

Burnshield was applied to cutaneous burns, ranging from first to third degree in severity, in all patients as a first treatment. The film was reapplied every 24-48 hours until re-epithelialization occurred, which occurred in a mean of 17 days. In cases of skin maceration, wound care was switched to a conventional gauze with hyaluronate sodium dressing.

 

Of the 44 patients in the study, 19 received one hydrogel application, eight received two applications, five received three, six received four and the remainder of patients received between 5 and 15 applications. The mean duration of hydrogel application in all patients was 94.4 days.

 

Dr Osti points out that that the percentage of late post-burn complications (hypertrophic scars and keloids reported in the literature is very high (70-80%). In the Burnshield study, hypertrophic scars developed in just 5% of the patients.

 

He attributes the significant reduction in scarring to a reduction in burn zone temperature by Burnshield Hydrogel application and a reduction in wound maceration due to the hydrogel adhesive.

 

Arch Surg 2006;141:39-42.