A burn scar on your skin does not only spoil your appearance, but also hampers your self-confidence. You can undertake a plastic surgery in order to eliminate burn scars and burn marks. A burn repair surgery is an effective way to fix any previous or fresh burn scars. Although a burn scar cannot be totally eliminated, this surgery helps in improving basic functions and makes the scar less prominent or noticeable.

About Burn Repair Surgery: There are two types of burn repair surgeries. An acute burn surgery is carried out immediately after a burn injury has been inflicted. It is undertaken in a hospital by a team of surgeons who specialize in acute burn repair surgeries.

A re-constructive burn surgery is usually carried out after the initial burn scar heals. Re-constructive burn surgery aims at improving both the functional appearance and the cosmetic appearance of a burn scar. This form of burn surgery incorporates the modification of the scar tissue. The treatment procedure for scar tissues requires several months to be successful. New scar contractures may appear for a long time after an injury. Facial burn scars, which cause problems with the eyes, lips, nose and cause hair loss can be rectified. Abnormally thick, white and discolored scars can also be lightened by undergoing a burn repair surgery.

Procedure: The surgical procedure of burn repair surgery primarily involves scar release methods. After a tight scar has been released, the opening or incision made in the skin is repaired. Several techniques are applied for the purpose of closing the wounds. These include skin grafts and skin rearrangement or Z-plasty. Sometimes, more advanced flaps are required. This depends on the location of the scar and the desired results. Minor procedures are performed in the form of an outpatient surgery, but in case of larger grafts and flaps, inpatient facility is required.

After undergoing the surgery, you must follow your surgeon's care instructions properly for effective healing. This would also enable you to have a long-term effect and improved appearance of burn scars. Follow-up appointments with your surgeon after the surgery are essential.

Before deciding on undergoing a burn repair surgery, you must consult an efficient cosmetic surgeon and discuss about the surgical procedure. You should know all important facts regarding the surgery and also have an idea about the results, which would be obtained. Non-surgical therapies can also be undertaken for repairing burn scars, which include scar massage, application of pressure garments and some other topical therapies.

How Effective Is Burn Repair Surgery?

Burning your skin is a very traumatic experience and can leave behind scars that remind one of the traumatic incident. Scarring caused by burns may fade a little with time but are usually permanent. Apart from affecting your appearance severe burns can also affect the functioning of the body. Burns can make a person withdraw socially by making him or her afraid of how people will accept them with their scars as well as make them depressed about their appearance.

Burn repair surgery can be categorised under two headings: Acute and Reconstructive

Acute repair surgery happens immediately after the burn and deals with large burns and burns that affect critical areas. The focus here is to close the skin in case of open burns and help the skin heal.
Reconstructive burn surgery addresses the skin after the initial burn wounds have healed. The goal here is to improve the appearance of the scars and ensure no lasting loss of functioning. Reconstructive burn surgery has a high success rate.
There are many types of reconstructive surgeries for burns and the type of surgery best suited to a patient is based on the location of the scar, the extent of scarring and the patient s personal goals.

Skin grafts: This involves the removal of healthy skin tissues from one part of the body and transplanting it to the burn site. This skin graft may include only a few outer layers of skin or may involve the entire dermis. This is used in cases of severe burns where a large section of the dermis is affected.
Microsurgery: This is a procedure where the surgeon reattaches or reconstructs severed fingers, toes, ears etc by sewing together blood vessels and nerves. This is often used alongside other surgical procedures.
Free flap procedure: In this procedure, muscle, bone or skin is transferred from one part of the body to another to reconstruct the area. This type of surgery is often accompanied by microsurgery.
Tissue expansion: This involves the insertion of a balloon expander under the skin near the burn site. As the balloon is filled with saline, the skin stretches and grows. Once the skin has stretched enough, the expander is removed and the skin can then be used to repair burn scars.
This procedure has many advantages as the skin colour and texture are a near perfect match thus reducing scarring to a large extent. However, it is a very slow procedure and can take a few months.

Burn Repair Surgery - How Effective It Is?

4 plastic surgery alternatives for burns and wounds

The branch of plastic surgery that is generally used for the treatment of burns and other wounds is known as reconstructive plastic surgery. There are numerous surgical methods that fall under this category, which is effectively used to treat these injuries and the related issues that they cause. 

What are medical issues caused by burns and wounds?

Some of the most frequently occurring issues that stem from burns and similar wounds are as follows:

- restriction of mobility

- aesthetic disfigurement and scarring

- loss of sensation in the affected area

The different issues are caused by varying kinds of burns and injuries and, hence, each case must be approached in a different manner for remedy.

Different kinds of plastic surgeries that are used for treatment

Depending on the nature of the injury, your plastic surgeon may opt for any of the following surgical methods for treating the problem.

1. Skin grafting

In this procedure, skin is removed from one part of the body and transplanted to the affected area. This method is used for the treatment of burns. There are two types of this surgical procedure - one removes a few layers from the dermis of the donor area (split-thickness graft) while the other removes the entire dermis (full-thickness graft). Recovery time depends on the kind of procedure used. Skin grafting is occasionally used for breast and nose reconstruction as well.

2. Microsurgery

This type of surgery makes the use of a microscope in reconstructive procedures for working on minuscule veins, arteries, and nerves for repairing damaged areas. Microsurgery is often used alongside other surgical procedures for re-attaching body parts, relieving paralysis of the face and in the reconstruction of breasts.

3. Tissue expansion

This method is used to induce the growth of extra skin on the body that can be used for reconstructive purposes. This is done by inserting a balloon expander underneath the skin that slowly gets filled with saline solution and makes the skin swell. This excess skin is then used for correction or reconstruction of the affected area.

4. Free flap procedure

This procedure involves the transfer of skin, bone, muscle and blood supply from the donor area to the damaged area for repairing purposes. Microsurgery is often performed alongside this treatment method, which is used most frequently for breast reconstruction or after the removal of cancer from the neck or head.

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Related Tip: 6 Quick and Handy Remedies To Treat Burns

4 Surgical Alternatives for Burns and Wounds

Home remedies to treat burns

A lot of pain, burning and hurt can be relieved by knowing properties of a few things from your kitchen. While minor burns and injuries can scare the wits out of anyone, young or old, the cure to relieving the pain and ensuring speedy healing lies in your cabinet. 

Here are few things to do and to avoid:

1. No Ice on a Burn: ice is known to restrict the flow of blood to the skin. What you should do instead is put the burnt area immediately under running water. The idea is to cool the area. The water used should be cool and not ice cold. 

2. Soothe with Aloevera. Aloevera is known to be a good remedy for burns and while it stops the pain, it also reduces the swelling and repairs the skin. Aloevera gel can be applied in sometime, but the gel should not be contaminated and should be clean.

3. Use Mint for Relief: After running cold water on the burnt area, pat it dry gently and apply a layer of crushed mint leaves, do not apply mint toothpaste over it. As toothpaste can get dried or stuck there and cause further injury. If mint leaves are used they should be clean and be thoroughly washed with water.

4. Try Tea Bags: If you have black tea bags at home, they can be of help. Moist wet, cooled tea bags, depending upon the area of the burnt skin and place over the area. Wrap with clean gauze. This can be used on slightly raw skin as it is astringent.

5. Puncture the Blisters: If there are blisters, never peel them off completely, you may puncture them to drain the fluid but do not remove the top layer of skin, as that serves as a natural protective dressing.

6. Apply Honey: A natural antibiotic, honey is used to prevent the burnt area from getting infected.

7. Rub Coconut Oil: Coconut oil has vitamin e and anti-bacterial properties which also stop the burnt area from getting infected. However, this should be used in healing phase when there are no blisters or they have started healing.


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6 Quick and Handy Remedies To Treat Burns

A chemical burn can occur owing to a number of substances, for instance, if the skin comes in contact with strong acids, bases, irritants, gasoline, paint thinner and drain cleaners then it react with your skin. Chemical burns are also termed as caustic burns. The symptoms usually depend on the intensity of a burn, which include redness, irritation, numbness, pain, the skin turning black and dead or even vision loss, if the chemicals come in contact with the eyes.


What are the Do s and Don ts?
Do away with those chemicals, which have caused the burn or wipe off the dry chemicals. It is safe to use towels or put on gloves for this work.
Remove jewelry or any contaminated clothing to avoid further burning and inflammation of the skin.
Rinse off the affected area immediately with cold water. 
Loosely wrap the area with sterile gauze or a bandage.
If required, you can even opt for pain relievers such as naproxen sodium, ibuprofen or acetaminophen.
Consider taking a tetanus injection, but at the same time, ensure that your booster is up-to-date.
Refrain from applying an antibiotic ointment over the burnt area or neutralizing it with an alkali or acid. This may aggravate the burn.


When should you seek an emergency care?
When the person exhibits sign of shock such as shallow breathing, pale complexion or is experiencing bouts of fainting.
When the chemical burn pierces through the upper layer of the skin, occupying an area of above 3 inches in diameter.
When the chemical burn has spread to the buttocks, groin, face, feet, hands, eyes or even the limb.


Chemical Burns - Do's and Don'ts You Must Follow

There are mainly three kinds of burns. The degree of burns is determined by the extent of damage that the burn causes. First degree burns are minor while third degree ones are extremely severe. Variety of factors could lead to a burn. They may be chemical, electrical, fire and even sun induced. Boiling or scalding liquids might result in burns as well. The burn type isn t necessarily determined by what causes it. Scalding hot water might cause all the three types of burns; based on the duration of the skin being in contact with the water and how hot the water is. 

Electrical and chemical burns need immediate tending to by a doctor as it might affect the internal body without it being apparent as the damage to the skin is not much. There are also fourth-degree burns. This type of burn includes all of the symptoms of a third-degree burn and also extends beyond the skin into tendons and bones.

First-degree burns: These result in the least skin damage and are also known as  superficial burns  as they only affect the skin s outermost layer. Redness, pain, minor swelling and inflammation are all the symptoms of a first degree burn. As a first degree burn heals, dry skin and peeling takes place. As the skin peels, the symptoms and signs disappear as the burn only manifests on the top most skin layer. It usually takes a week or little more for a first degree burn to heal without any scarring. If the burnt area affects over three inches of skin, or is on the face, then a doctor should be consulted. Home care generally suffices for a first degree burn. Healing time accelerates with rapid treatment of the burn.
Second-degree burns: They are serious as the extent of damage is deeper than the topmost layer of the skin. The skin becomes extremely sore with the formation of red blisters. The blisters might pop open and as time passes, the wound may develop a scab. Proper bandaging is required to reduce chances of an infection. Home remedies should be avoided. The burns usually heal within three weeks.
Third-degree burns: They are the most severe. They extend through each layer of the skin. They might not cause any pain due to the severity of burn as the nerves might get damaged. There might be extreme scarring if corrective surgery isn t done.

Burns - Understanding Its Degrees!

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