# Interesting Burn Call



## keith10247 (Oct 1, 2007)

So yesterday morning we were dispatched for an injury.  Patient was a 3yr old female who was sitting on a kitchen counter and pulled a kettle of hot water over and had 2nd degree burns across roughly 7% of the back of her thighs and butt.  We walk in to the house and see the little girl laying on the couch screaming and crying.  We look and notice there is green stuff all over the burns!  It turns out the mother put toothpaste on the burn to try to make it feel better.  Once we took some sterile water and wet down some 5x9's to wipe off the toothpaste, the girl stopped screaming and actually stopped crying for a little bit.  

What was this lady thinking?!  I have never heard of such a thing..! 

The medics showed up and advised the mother to never put ointment on a burn again.  Apparently they have seen this before.


----------



## Ridryder911 (Oct 1, 2007)

She probably thought it had Aloe Vera in it... or the old wives tale of not allowing air getting to the wound. Yep, good old clean water then dry dressings... 

R/r 911


----------



## jrm818 (Oct 1, 2007)

This explination sounds a little qustionable....how exactly did the kiddo pull water onto themselves and burn their rear?


----------



## bstone (Oct 1, 2007)

The location of the burns and toothpaste on them seems very suspicious. Why wasn't the kid sitting in the bathtub with the cold water on? Have you reported this as a possible abuse case?


----------



## Pamela (Oct 1, 2007)

yea I was questioning abuse too. I don't know how a child would pull a kettle of hot water down on themselves and burn their backside...


----------



## Ridryder911 (Oct 2, 2007)

Pamela said:


> yea I was questioning abuse too. I don't know how a child would pull a kettle of hot water down on themselves and burn their backside...




Actually it is not that unusual of type of burn. Many parents are not aware that they leave the handles turned outside of the range/stove thus toddlers are able to grab a hold of them. I have seen grease, water, etc.. 

I agree, it should be investigated as all incidents in children. 

R/r 911


----------



## bstone (Oct 2, 2007)

Rid, not that a burn on a child is suspect, but the location of this burn and the toothpaste on the burn raise big red flags.


----------



## keith10247 (Oct 2, 2007)

I could see this as being questionable; however, I can kind of see how it happened.. The mother had the 3yr old sitting on the kitchen counter.  They were making tea in one of those little electric tea kettles.  The kid knocked over the tea kettle and the hot water flooded the counter top to where her thighs and rear end got burnt.  

PD was there around the same time we showed up (their remote station is conveniently located in our station.  I do not believe they found anything to indicate abuse.


----------



## MedicPrincess (Oct 2, 2007)

bstone said:


> Why wasn't the kid sitting in the bathtub with the cold water on?


 
For the same reason as people will help a long fall patient to their feet, or pull a person out of a vehicle after a crash, or pee on a sea creature sting, or take a TBSP of baking soda whey they think they are having heartburn, or any number of other crazy things.....

because somebody, somewhere told them that is how what you do to fix that problem, they are trying to help, or they hit their panic point and  didn't know what else to do.

I do agree, burns on the backside like that need to be looked into, very closely.


----------



## Ridryder911 (Oct 2, 2007)

I worked as a Burn Nurse at one of the largest burn centers in the nation, and if I had a penny for every homemade remedy I would be rich. I have seen toothpaste, cold cream, first aid burn cream, meat, aloe vera, and the most common is butter.

The reason butter is because in the "old days" this was kept in the ice box, and was cold... unfortunately, people still assume it is a first line treatment.  

Of course you have to scrub the area and debride it in the Hubbard tank. 

Like I said, it is not that unusual of a location. Usually, pots or pans with the handles turn outside from the stove makes great things to grab ahold of to see what is cooking. I have seen countless "grease burns", one was a pot roast that was poured on the face to chest. 

Again, part of our job is teaching and informing parents to be aware. Yes, some areas may consider this neglect if pushed. More suspicious burns are circumferential, strange areas, and those that are unusual in patterns. Like I described, it does not hurt to have it investigated. 

R/r 911


----------



## bstone (Oct 2, 2007)

What is in that "first aid burn cream" anyways? I've seen things with tee-tree oil, but what about the white goop?


----------



## Ridryder911 (Oct 2, 2007)

Usually, they are no more than lanolin type cream. They may have a very small minute amount of antibacterial, but most do not contain very much due to allergens. Personally, I believe they are more a "placebo" effect than real treatment. 

R/r 911


----------



## Tincanfireman (Oct 2, 2007)

Toothpaste is a new one on me, but I Googled "Toothpaste burn" and got this as one of the top results: http://www.otan.dni.us/webfarm/emailproject/usaburn.htm . Seems like there's quite a fan base for using it, and I provide it as one example why these home-brew cures never seem to die.


----------



## Operator 37 (Oct 5, 2007)

*Spilled Tea?*

While doing ER time for EMT-P training, a 5 y/o girl was brought in to the ER with a burn to her left ear. The ear had 1st and 2nd degree burns without any other tissue involvement. The grandmother who brought the child in explained that the girl had knocked a cup of tea of the kitchen counter. The only way this burn could have been made was by forcing the child's ear into a cup of a boiling liquid and being held there. The incident was documented by ER staff and the police where notified before grandmother took child home. Do not know what happened after.


----------



## Pamela (Oct 5, 2007)

bstone said:


> Rid, not that a burn on a child is suspect, but the location of this burn and the toothpaste on the burn raise big red flags.



Yea that's what I was going for. When I was younger I pulled a put of hot coffee down onto myself. I just think the location is strange.


----------



## Meursault (Oct 5, 2007)

Tincanfireman said:


> Toothpaste is a new one on me, but I Googled "Toothpaste burn" and got this as one of the top results: http://www.otan.dni.us/webfarm/emailproject/usaburn.htm . Seems like there's quite a fan base for using it, and I provide it as one example why these home-brew cures never seem to die.



Eggs, pickles, mustard, potatoes. Apparently, burns should be treated in a deli. I can sort of understand the prevalence of home remedies for minor or chronic conditions, but first aid?


----------



## BossyCow (Oct 6, 2007)

I don't see the location as strange at all.  If she was sitting on the counter and the boiling water was spilled onto that counter, she would have been sitting in it.  The toothpaste on the burn is typical, Mom wanted to do 'something' and in a panic tried a home remedy she heard worked.  

I teach a lot of FA classes and one of my favorite things in the section on burns is to ask the students what they have heard to put on burns.  I've heard milk, butter, mayonaise, hair spray, a slice of buttered bread, cold cream, vasoline, vicks, carmex, .... toothpaste is new to me, but I can see that the cooling feeling of mint might be seen as giving relief.  

The best way to determine if the incident is child abuse is the parent's behavior and reaction.  This one would raise no red flags to me.


----------

