All You Need to Know About Burn Injuries

Burns are one of the most common and painful injuries that a person can experience. They can occur due to exposure to several things like fire, hot liquids, chemicals, electrical current, and radiation.

Types of Burns and Their Causes

Burn injuries can range in severity, as well as the various factors that can cause them to happen in the first place. For someone who has suffered a burn, recognizing the type and degree of burn can help you with treatment—and with potential legal proceedings.

Thermal Burns

Thermal burns are caused by exposure to fires, hot items, hot liquids, or steam. They are the most common type of burn and can cause significant damage to the skin, tissue, and muscles. Thermal burns can be further classified into categories based on the severity of the burn:

• First-degree burns: These are the mildest forms of burns that typically only result in damage to the epidermis. There is reddening of the skin and pain, but the damage is considered short-term.
• Second-degree burns: These burns are more severe and can potentially damage the top and lower layer of the skin (epidermis and dermis). Appearance-wise, the skin can become red and swell, with pain and blistering present.
• Third-degree burns: These are the most severe type of thermal burns and go deeper than the epidermis and dermis. These types of burns can result in severe injury to the tissues, muscles, bones, and nerves at the site of the burn.

Radiation Burns

Radiation burns most commonly occur as sunburns, but there are other causes such as radiation therapy. Exposure to ionizing radiation can cause significant damage to the skin cells, leading to radiation burns.

Electrical Burns

Electrical burns can be caused by faulty wiring in a home or an electrical current that jolts through the body. The severity of the burn depends on the amount of current that passes through the body and the duration of the exposure.

Chemical Burns

Chemical burns are common in industrial work sites and occur with direct contact to certain chemicals. The severity of the burn depends on the type of chemical involved, the concentration, and the duration of exposure.

Friction Burns

Friction burns are often associated with accidents, including "road rash." This type of burn occurs when the skin rubs against a hard surface, causing damage to the skin cells.

Burn Injury Educational Infographic

If you’ve suffered a burn injury caused by someone else’s negligence, our Philadelphia burn injury lawyers are here to help you. Count on The Beasley Firm to protect your rights every step of the way and pursue the compensation you need moving forward.

Call our firm today.