My 7-month old nephew was scalded in the leg by hot water with Vicks’ Vaporub in it. It peeled off his skin instantly as he cried horribly. I almost hit my brother with a baseball bat when I saw the poor boy’s leg. My question is, how long does a skin-peeling/burn/wound of this sort heals? Would this scalding incident leave a nasty scar on the boy’s leg forever? HOw long will his scar, if there should be any, vanish? What’s the best way to heal scalding scars?
I hate to tell you this, but my cousin, who is 45, has a vivid scald scar on his leg and he was scalded when he 3.
Burns of any description leave scars which will always be there.
If the scars are very bad, plastic surgery is an option, but my dad was very badly burned thirty years ago and had plastic surgery which still causes strangers to look twice when they first meet him. I am presuming, though that the techniques used today in plastic surgery for burns victims has improved radically in the intervening 30 years.
What does the child’s doctor say?
Kid has got to see a doctor.
If the burn was bad enough to peel off the skin, then it’s probably not going to vanish. I still have a little spot on my arm from a minor candle burn. Follow curly chick’s advice.
Out of curiosity, why was the Vick’s in the hot water? Nasal decongestant? I always figured Vick’s worked just fine on its own.
Best Wishes
I scalded myself pretty badly on the inside of my forearm about a year or so ago. I kept it covered with on of those new, clear, anti-scarring bandages until it was pretty well healed. You can still see the spot if you know where to look, but it’s pretty faint.
He should see a doctor, preferably one with some knowledge about dermatology.
When I worked in a restaurant, I received many burns, several bad enough to raise blisters, peel skin, etc.
In every case, I reported the burn to my boss, covered the burned area with Neosporin or generic equivalent, and bandaged the wound, rotating clean gauze onto the wound two or three times daily, depending on whether it was weeping or not.
To this day, the only one that has left a scar is the one on my wrist that I removed the bandage from. I went swimming in the ocean and also got sunburn on the wound. Several other cooks at the same restaurant held it as a point of fact that getting sunburn (even mild sunburn) on an unhealed burn would guarantee an ugly scar, but covering and caring for the wound would minimize the scar and it would eventually fade. All but the one on my wrist are nearly invisible now; since the skin is so new, I don’t know if the odds of scar-free recovery are better or worse for a baby.
I scalded off a patch of skin on my foot about the size of a fifty cent piece. I thought it was all second degree, but a patch about the size of a quarter turned out to be third. Left a big scar to start with, but it gradually shifted location and shrank. Now I can’t remember which foot it was on.
Of course, it was more than five years ago and relatively small comparatively. And my shoe covered it, so it was never eye-catching.
Children react badly to damage, because they are small and fragile, but they’re growing so much, changing shape and creating new tissue. This lets them heal more thouroughly when they heal, most of the time. Especially very young children.
I’ll agree with everyone who said that he needs to see a doctor. My little burn took more than a month to close up. It was a very small percentage of my body. And I’m an adult. Your nephew has a wound that is a much bigger shock to his body. The last thing he needs is an infection, and his leg isn’t big enough to put the burned area very far away from his diaper.
Coaching on the best way to keep it bandaged and clean would be a good thing, here. An antibiotic might not be a bad idea. The doctor would know.
We’ll all be hoping for the best for him. Hope the burn isn’t as bad as it looks and that he will heal fast.
If you are scalded, immerse the scalded area in cold water for as long as possible. This will minimise damage and scarring.
There have been cases whereby people have fallen into cold water after being exposed to fire, the parts of their body under water suffered much less damage and did not scar. I will try and find a cite.
Then explain how when I burned my hand, which resulted in my entire hand blistering, didn’t leave a scar? Within three weeks there was pink new skin and a month or so after that it looked back to normal.
It depends on treatment: cold water straight away and a carefully looked after blister will do wonders for preventing scarring.
I burnt my hand badly as a kid. There are no scars and the doctor has no idea why.
However I have a faint scar on my arm from when I burnt it on the oven about 6 months ago. And I get the feeling it will never vanish.
S I guess you can never tell!
I have said vapor rub burn scar on my forearm that happened 30 years ago. It’s difficult to see because it has faded quite a bit and also the hair on my arm is dark colored.
Don’t be too hard on your brother. My mother to this day still feels guilty about it. Certain scars never heal.
Hot? How hot, boiling or hot water heated tap water.
How much skin, how deep?
1st, 2nd, or 3rd. degree burn?
In any event skin oil with vitalmin e, applied daily or oftener will help to fade the scar.
Consult qualified skin specialist for definitive information.
Consider the scar as abadge of valor!
When I was a college freshman, I got burned by my dorm-mate who ran into me with hot water. I went immediately to urgent care and was treated by a doctor. My skin bubbled and blistered and the doctor took pulled the blistering skin off. I received 2nd degree burns and had was given a cream and ordered to rub it on my burn wound and wrap it around bandages. It healed completely about a month later and no scar is there.
You don’t say what part of the leg nor do you say whether the child has been examined by a physician. As any wound heals, there is a tendency for contracture to occur. This becomes a problem with some burns as contracture can produce limitation of the mobility of the affected area. If he hasn’t had it already, your nephew needs medical attention.
Regarding the scar, without seeing the affected area, it is impossible to predict the ultimate cosmetic outcome. Nonetheless, here are some generalizations: the deeper the injury, the more scarring. Young skin heals better than old skin. Individual variation exists in healing; dark-skinned individuals are generally at a higher risk for keloid (read-big, ugly scar)formation.
ChoosyDermatologist MD
When I was 3 I spilled boiling hot soup on my left arm. It left a rather large scar all over the arm but 20 yrs later it has gone down to about a third of what it was. Best wishes for the little guy.
When my brother was about ten he lifted a pot of pasta off the stove and spilled it on himself. We got him in cold water and the burns weren’t too serious. But for a long time he had a macaroni-shaped scar on his stomach. Wonder if he still has it. He’s nineteen now.