According to the American Burn Association, there were 486,000 injuries that required medical treatment in 2016. Burn injuries can be caused by a variety of things such as residential fires, vehicle crash fires, and faulty products, and they can cause anywhere from minor injuries to the top layer of skin to third-degree burns that damage all layers of skin and can even affect bones and organs.
Recovering from a burn injury is not only a physical healing process but also an emotional one, as scarring and treatment can alter your physical appearance. Burn injuries are also one of the most expensive to treat and can potentially take years of treatment and therapy to heal.
BURN INJURY TREATMENT
If a patient’s burn injuries are severe, there’s a possibility that they might be transferred to a burn care center where physicians can do a specific treatment like skin grafting as well as provide intravenous antibiotics to prevent infection and fluids.
Although small third-degree burns may heal on their own, if it’s larger than a fifty-cent piece, the area of skin must be grafted or it will not heal on its own. Skin grafting is a procedure doctors use where they take healthy skin from one part of the body, to repair the burned area of the body with it. If there are no infections associated with the burn, then it’s possible for patients to see healing after two weeks, depending on the severity and size of the burns.
In addition to in-hospital treatment, it’s also common for burn victims to need physical therapy, as their muscles and joints may have trouble after receiving severe burns.
PSYCHOLOGICAL CARE AFTER A BURN INJURY
If a person has incurred severe burns, they might experience psychological distress such as feeling irritable, hopeless, distant, difficulty sleeping, or difficulty concentrating. This may be a result of PTSD from the accident where they received the burns or from the physical changes to their appearance as a result of the burns, or a combination of the two.
Psychological counseling and support groups may be necessary for a burn victim to feel happy, normal, and good after their accident.
If you or a loved one has sustained severe burn injuries due to the negligence of another person, company, or faulty product in Georgia, you may be entitled to compensation for medical expenses, pain and suffering, and lost wages. To determine if legal action is in your best interest, CLICK HERE TO CONTACT THE FRY LAW FIRM, or call at (404) 948-3571.
