# Docs and nurses and medical types: did I make a bad mistake? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 8, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929 "2003-07-08T03:49:19Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 19\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![DAVEW0071](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e19b73/32.png) [@DAVEW0071](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DAVEW0071)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 3:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/1 "2003-07-08T03:49:19Z")
On Saturday I suffered a small burn on my wrist, from my grill. It blistered up and was not so bad Saturday and Sunday. I didn’t cover it or even put any ointment on it. But Sunday evening, as I was undressing, I noticed that the blister had broken. It was a little sore, too. Easily irritated. Still, I didn’t put anything on it, nor did I cover it. It’s sort of scabbed over now, and it’s still sore, but I wonder if I should have attended to it immediately when it broke. The area is about half the length of the end of my pinkie finger, and about half as wide as a pencil. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/2 "2003-07-08T04:58:30Z")
All you need to do with burns is run cold water (from the tap, not the fridge) over them as long as you can. Everything else you did was fine, there’s no need to cover it unless it’s somewhere you tend to hit on things. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/3 "2003-07-08T05:21:42Z")
All you need to do with burns is run cold water (from the tap, not the fridge) over them as long as you can. Everything else you did was fine, there’s no need to cover it unless it’s somewhere you tend to hit on things. ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 5:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/4 "2003-07-08T05:31:05Z")
All you need to do with burns is run cold water (from the tap, not the fridge) over them as long as you can. Everything else you did was fine, there’s no need to cover it unless it’s somewhere you tend to hit on things. ---
**Author:** ![tomndebb](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/b9e5f3/32.png) [@tomndebb](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tomndebb)\ **Post date:** [July 8, 2003, 5:49am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/5 "2003-07-08T05:49:44Z")
Triply good advice, that! However, once the blister has broken, it would not hurt to apply Neosporin™ (generic: Triple Antibiotic) to reduce the possibilty of infection. Depending on where the blister is and how likely you are to keep bumping and irritating it, you might want to check out your local pharmacy for “wet” bandages with names like “new” skin. They will protect the wound without irritating it. However, as **AndrewT** noted, a burn with no broken skin cannot actually be treated with anything and applying bandages can irritate the wound. Simply running cold, (presumably clean), tap water to reduce the pain and limit the damage, followed by letting the wound heal on its own is the best policy. ---
**Author:** ![SnoopyFan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d07c76/32.png) [@SnoopyFan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SnoopyFan)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 4:22am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/6 "2003-07-09T04:22:57Z")
FWIW next time you burn yourself get yourself a tea bag, wet it down and slap it on the burn. Helps it heal. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 5:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/7 "2003-07-09T05:17:49Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AndrewT \* > **All you need to do with burns is run cold water over them as long as you can.** I head that contrary to popular belief, this isn’t to help cure it or anything, it just eases the pain - nothing more than that. Which oftentimes is all you want anyway. ---
**Author:** ![GuanoLad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guanolad/32/42_2.png) [@GuanoLad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GuanoLad)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 5:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/8 "2003-07-09T05:23:50Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by AndrewT \* > **All you need to do with burns is run cold water over them as long as you can.** I head that contrary to popular belief, this isn’t to help cure it or anything, it just eases the pain - nothing more than that. Which oftentimes is all you want anyway. ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/9 "2003-07-09T06:42:27Z")
The cold water isn’t just to ease the pain. It removes the heat from the burn and prevents further damage. Rememeber that a burn is basically a big mess of boiling water and hot fat inside your body. Cooling it down as fast aspossible is a real good idea. ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/46a35a/32.png) [@Tim\_T-Bonham.net](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_T-Bonham.net)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 6:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/10 "2003-07-09T06:46:15Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SnoopyFan \* > \*\*FWIW next time you burn yourself get yourself a tea bag, wet it down and slap it on the burn. Helps it heal. \*\* Interesting claim. Could you cite some reputable medical research supporting this claim, please? ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 7:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/11 "2003-07-09T07:13:33Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by [t-bonham@scc.net](mailto:t-bonham@scc.net) \* > \*\*Interesting claim. > > Could you cite some reputable medical research supporting this claim, please? \*\* I’m too sleepy to find a cite right now but tannic acid (heavily present in tea) is a natural antibiotic, and, IIRC, soothes pain. In any case, a cold wet teabag will provide a cooling effect and there’s nothing else I know of you can apply directly to a burn (other than other cold things) that will provide any relief or speed healing. (other than Neosporin, which ISN’T generic, but any generic triple antibiotic will do) ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 7:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/12 "2003-07-09T07:28:11Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Blake \* > \*\*The cold water isn’t just to ease the pain. It removes the heat from the burn and prevents further damage. Rememeber that a burn is basically a big mess of boiling water and hot fat inside your body. Cooling it down as fast aspossible is a real good idea. \*\* Don’t put ice on it though. I’ve heard the tip about tea bags, too, though I can’t recall whether it was from a reliable source or not. In my experience, burns hurt a LOT while healing. Watch the wound carefully. I am not a doctor or other medical professional, and the last time I took first aid training was quite a few years ago. ---
**Author:** ![OliverTwistofLime](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/b487fb/32.png) [@OliverTwistofLime](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OliverTwistofLime)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 8:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/13 "2003-07-09T08:19:26Z")
The blister suggests that the burn is a 2nd degree burn…there should be no scar…keeping an open wound clean, however, is good policy for 2nd degree burns. A clean dressing or loose dressing is helpful to keep the bad bugs away but generally unnecessary for a wound such as yours. Yes, to the tea…it does contain tannic acid which relieves the pain somewhat and is not an urban legend…references? I am a licensed MD. ---
**Author:** ![dauerbach](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/c2a13f/32.png) [@dauerbach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dauerbach)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 10:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/14 "2003-07-09T10:23:07Z")
It seems pretty unlikely that you could manage to get yourself to cold water before the heat had dissipated by itself. Sounds like quite a minor burn. Of course a major injury would be the same thing on my wrist. What makes you think you did anything wrong? It’s not infected and the arm didn’t fall off. ---
**Author:** ![peedin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/peedin/32/14095_2.png) [@peedin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/peedin)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 1:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/15 "2003-07-09T13:30:57Z")
> **[Tannic acid as a topical agent in burns: historical considerations and...](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/7718122/?dopt=Abstract)** > > The usage of tannic acid (TA) as a topical agent in burns in the past and the present is described. Its introduction by Davidson in 1925 led to the widespread use of TA. The high infection risk during times of war and reports of liver damage after... Tannic acid and burns (This is the free Medline site. Plug in “tannic acid” and “burns” into the search box). ---
**Author:** ![Jonathan\_Chance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jonathan_chance/32/701_2.png) [@Jonathan\_Chance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jonathan_Chance)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/16 "2003-07-09T14:16:45Z")
On the ‘cold water from the tap thing’… What about if the tap in question pulls from a well? I filter our water mightily (and expensively, dammit) but there’s still some iron oxide in our tap water. Would that have an effect on the burn? ---
**Author:** ![Blake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/a9a28c/32.png) [@Blake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Blake)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 10:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/17 "2003-07-09T22:31:09Z")
Iron oxide won’t do any damage. Unless your water is contaminated with pathogens or contains a lot (an I mean a lot) of sulfur or salt you’re right to use it on burns. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [July 9, 2003, 11:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/18 "2003-07-09T23:23:08Z")
This is great… for once I posted something without backing it up and had it done for me 🙂 Hope it heals well, Dave. ---
**Author:** ![Koxinga](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/4af34b/32.png) [@Koxinga](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Koxinga)\ **Post date:** [July 10, 2003, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/docs-and-nurses-and-medical-types-did-i-make-a-bad-mistake/186929/19 "2003-07-10T00:13:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by [t-bonham@scc.net](mailto:t-bonham@scc.net) \* > \*\*Interesting claim. > > Could you cite some reputable medical research supporting this claim, please? \*\* Sixty years ago, I wonder if one could have found any reputable medical research supporting the old wives’ tale that a poultice of mouldy bread helps a wound heal faster.