Hey Everyone!

On Sunday my girlfriend got a pretty bad burn on her hand when she was using some very hot water. The skin was initially a dark red (no blisters) but over the past few days it has turned purple (like a bruise color). The burn covers a pretty large portion of the top of her hand. She saw a doctor on Tuesday and she said it was going through the normal healing process.

I felt better after hearing that, but I would like to know if someone could tell me what stages the skin goes through when healing from a burn. I would like to be able to keep an eye out for any possible complications that could occur during the healing process. Thanks for the help!

OK, let's think about it a bit:

Burns over a large area. First think about what happens with sunburn. Red. Stinging. Tighening of the skin. Peeling.

Small area burns: They usually hurt. Get red. Eventually blister. Turn white and develop a clear fluid under them.

The more intense the burn the deeper the damage. If it's very deep it will bruise because the capillaries will be damaged under the surface.

During the healing process, it is important to keep the area clean and moist. A good product to aid this process is 2nd skin burn pads.

I'm not going to guess what "large area" is in this case. 2" x 3"? Or 4" x 4"

It could also form a scab.

Soaking in cool water will be good for it.

Play games with any wound and it will heal quit fast. Clean. Moist. Cover. Air. Anti-bacterial ointment. All at the right times.

No sure of the process, but I instictively do it or tell someone what to do based on what the wound looks like.
I don't have a flow chart.

What should have happened is that cold water should have been run over the hand immediately. The faster the better. This generally prevents major tissue damage.

Major advice. If a blister appears with a clear fluid, DO NOT POP IT. Attempt to make it go down in other ways such as soaking in Epson salts and water or neosporin.

Blue or red streaks traveling up the arm are very bad.
Been there. Done that when I was about 6.