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Page: << Prev | 1 | 2 Boys accounted for nearly 59 percent of injuries. Burns most often occurred on a hand or finger (36 percent of the time) or on the head and face (21 percent), the study found.
Nearly 92 percent of burns occurred at home, most often in the kitchen. About 32 percent of burns were attributed to kitchen appliances and 21 percent to other household appliances, such as curling irons and irons. About 14.5 percent were bath-water related, according to the study.
The severity of a burn depends on how many layers of skin are injured, explained Dr. J. Kevin Bailey, a burn surgeon at Shriner's Hospital for Children in Cincinnati. Because children have thinner skin than adults, kids are more susceptible to not only getting burned faster but more severely.
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Parents can protect their children from scalds by keeping the water heater turned to no more than 120 degrees Fahrenheit. "It's very easy to get a deep burn on a baby in a matter of seconds," Bailey said.
Burns can be among the most painful injuries, leading to lengthy hospital stays and surgical interventions.
"Your skin is an organ, and part of the job of the skin is to give the brain feedback on the environment, so it has an intense amount of nerve endings," Bailey said. "When you take off that top layer of skin, it exposes a huge number of nerves to noxious stimuli, which you feel as intense pain."
The McKinney's daughter was sent by ambulance from their local emergency room to Nationwide Children's Hospital, where she was sedated and the second-degree wounds treated and dressed. Though she made a full recovery, her parents say they will never forget that evening.
"Every time I open the oven door, I put my hand out and make sure she's not behind me," McKinney said. "Kids are so curious. And they are so fast. In the blink of an eye they can be right behind you or right next to you."
More information
The Nemours Foundations offers tips on preventing burns, shocks and fires.
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