Major Burn Incedent. Advice Need Desperately

God, last night was a nightmare. I got the poi and my arm caught up in caution tape, I set my pants on fire (Didn't burn through so my leg was ok.) Hit my face with the poi (Not enough contact to burn though, thank God) and ended up so exausted that by the time it was all over, my dad and I went to Jack In the Box, got home, and my legs couldn't support me anymore.

My mom ended up with a serious burn though. A trail of flame caught her pants on fire, burned a whole through them, and left her with a second degree burn about the size of half a poi wick.

The skin has peeled off of it, it is totally red, and it is seeping clear fluid. She is in a lot of pain from it, and would like to know what ya'll do to treat poi injuries. She is currently using an aloe vera sunburn gel, and neosporin. Because of the area and the size of it, we are unable to keep a bandage on it. Any advice?

We are praying that it doesn't end up scaring.

and

damn man..im so sorry that happened. make sure you keep it clean for one and keep it drained as much as possible. if you have a place you can get herbs kava-kava and meadowsweet are good for pain and inflamation boiled and made into a tea. other than that...not sure what else to tell you..other than keep with what you are doin. when its healed olive oil and vitamin E are good to lessen the apperance of scars. dont do it before its healed tho..it will cause an infection. ill check on herbs and such natural cures for you..gota find the books tho..get back to ya

take her to the hospital

Go to hospital/doctors now.

your going to spend the next few hour being bored, so take reading matter and practice poi.
at worst all you loose that way is a few hours.
but after that its a lot less pain.
and it will heal quicker/better and claner with professional treatment

The problem here is risk of infection.
yo momma really don't want that,

Glass and Bram are exactly right. She needs medical attention. Such a burn can get seriously infected. And I mean SERIOUSLY infected.

Aloe-Vera and others work great once you've cooled down a first-degree burn, but skin peeling off tells me that this is either a second-degree or third-degree burn.

Wrap the burn in a clean, dry dressing (gauze if you have it, a clean pillowcase will do if you don't have gauze) and go to the emergency room right away.

and apply lots more polysporin

I agree: go now.
For future reference, never allow the feeling of cooking to continue. In case of such a burn, immediately get the burned area under cold water. Keep the cold water running over it as long as it continues to hurt.
The best herbal ointments for burns are tea tree oil and calendula cream, but I always use them after a modern wide-spectrum antibiotic.
Wheat germ oil works wonders on scars and keeps the skin soft and moist during feeling.
Sorry to hear about the accident. If I ever hurt my mum I'd feel like such a dog.

Okay so excuse me if this seems inappropriate but i'm just curious, was your mom spinning fire and burned herself or how did she get her burn?
Hope she heals quick and there's no scar!

I would like to our Dr. to be's statement on Honey that it needs to be raw and not processed, because the processing of honey really effects any healing properties. Also, with the honey you can infuse it with white willow bark and lavender blossoms. Heat this gently, strain out herbs and when it cools spread a small even layer. Lavender is also a cooling/soothant/anticeptic/anti-inflamatory. White Willow is a pain killer.

Definately Take your moms to the hospital Mr. Ginny is totally correct that there is a huge risk of massive infection. If this happens your mom is going to wish to god she was only dealing with the pain of a burn. It's not worth risking your Mom's safety and well being, by scewing around with the opinions of people that you only know as a screen name. Take her to see a medical professional, because (depending of course on the actual size and sevarity of the burn) she may require hosptalization for treatment and observation.

You should always seek a medical professional for any thing worse than a first degree burn, which consists of reddening of the skin. Second degree (where the skin blisters) and third degree burns (where the skin is actually charred) are very serious so don't f*ck around it's not worth it.

With that being said, one of the best burn treatments I have found are these

adaptic non-adhearing bandages

though they are rather expensive they work really well. I am lucky enough to have a huge jar of adaptic ointment in my refridgerator. I use it on all my minor burns. Also A+D ointment (like your tattoo artist will give you to use on your fresh tattoos) also works really well on burns. It is much cheaper and easier to find than adaptic, though it doesn't work quite as well. Both are great if you keep them in the fridge so that they are cold when applied to the burn. Make sure the area is cleaned out really well before you apply them as with most ointments (even the antibiotic ones) if there is any dirt or germs in the wound most ointments will seal them in and keep them there. That can cause problems.

[ 03 November 2002, 11:25: Message edited by: SickpuPpy ]

I didn't realize honey was an herb.
(Sorry, Maximus is a smart ass.)
Actually I was taught Dr. Christopher's Burn Ointment, it is one part honey, one part wheat germ oil, and one part powdered comfrey root. Equal parts, mixed and applied on the burn on the spot.
I keep it in our first aid kit, but I've never used it. (For honey, I have several of those little packets you get at the coffee house.)
I still wouldn't use it until after healing has begun. I would use Listerine after cooling the injury down, then a wide spectrum antibiotic. Then one of those bandages Pele mentions.
Do you honestly believe the honey in your jar is sterile? Tree tea oil is the best natural anti-septic.
And how about using kava kava as a painkiller? A large enough dose to make burn pain go away could cause renal failure and liver damage, possibly leading to a need for a liver transplant, right? And to ignore it at this stage could lead to complications requiring an esclarotomy.
I went to Burning Man with an MD and we spent about four hours discussing burns on the way back. Now we share clients.
He had a third degree from a motorcycle accident and used a treatment used in burn clinics in Italy: fresh raw yogurt.
Also not an herb
But, I agree. Honey good.

I do hope mom's doing better.
P.S. Are you back in Santa Barbara yet Mike? I was just there today for the anti-war march. I think we should get together and share notes.

[ 03 November 2002, 14:43: Message edited by: Maximus ]

<<<<<<<<<<Okay so excuse me if this seems inappropriate but i'm just curious, was your mom spinning fire and burned herself or how did she get her burn?
Hope she heals quick and there's no scar!>>>>>>>>>

She was spinning. She was doing the corkscrew when a breeze hit the poi and sent the flame towards her. Her pants caught fire, burned a hole in them, and gave her a second degree burn. Thats asically what happened.

Mom said to say thanks. We have a friend thats a nurse that she's going to talk to tommorow. Basically she wanted to know basic stuff. Things like, should we keep it dry, coat it with neosporin, leave it uncovered, cover it with a bandage and things like that. Thanks for all the advice though. Its greatly appreciated

and

[ 03 November 2002, 14:01: Message edited by: Ash ]

That certainly sucks. I'm glad your mom seems to be doing better. I hope it doesn't seem too tacky for me to ask some followup questions.
As a concerned firespinner I am curious about the exact mechanism by which the accident happened (I can't help it, I'm a teacher, I gotta try and learn from every experience!)

Was she using whitegas? Did the wick actually touch her? What fabric were her pants made of?

Continue to give our best reguards to your mom!

DEFINITELY TAKE YOUR MUM TO A HOSPITAL

I think possibly tea tree oil is a bad idea. It is definitely a great antiseptic, however it also has cytotoxic properties ie it kills cells. Since the healing of a wound requires the multiplication of said cells this may be contradictory to wound healing.

The first aid for all burns is place affected area under cold running water for at least 20min, this may seem like a long time but it is definitely worth it as it will reduce the severity of the burn. Also any burn equal to or larger than a 20 cent piece (3cm diameter), should recieve hospital attention. This sized burn may seem small, but the process of burning removes all the skins natural defences to infection, which means the burn is predisposed to become infected by any environmental contaminants (bacteria). You should definitely consult a doctor as your mum may require antibiotics to help her body fight any infection. At the very least they will be able to give her some effective pain relief.

Hope your mum is ok, at that this was of some help.
smiley

I'm with NYC, i'd like to know what sort of pants she was wearing? and where was your safety? and why were you spinning when you were tired and exhausted??

Prevention: better than a cure `

Hope your Mom is feeling better Ash, and yourself too! xoxoxxo

for your family, Ash!
Most of the above advice is sound, especially the go to a doctor part! The one different thing i would mention is that my doctor told me that when burnt, i should start with tepid water for a short period, then go to cold water...

Best wishes to your mum for a clean and speedy healing...

Hey, hope you're mum's ok!
I was told by a nurse that body temperature water is the best immediate treatment for burns. If you use cold water, your body sends heat to the area, which can make the burn actually go deeper in to the skin. For smaller burns, like on your finger, stick it straight in your mouth to get it back to body temperature.(This can be a bit tricky if you burn your foot!)
Also Pele mentioned Lavender oil, which I believe is the best ointment to use. But I still agree that for a major burn please to seek medical advise. Safe twirling everyone!!

If you ever scald your fingers in the kitchen.. hold your ear lobe.. as the blood cools in your ears anyway - like an elephant - it'll take the heat away really quickly..

Now I whack myself plenty when playing with fire. But since I always wear leather / denim and other 100% natural fibres when playing, hitting myself is not a problem. (I don't do wraps but if I did same applies (natural fibres / bare skin).

I think a lot of poi accidents happen because people just do not wear the proper clothes? Has anyone heard of someone playing poi burning themselves badly when they were wearing natural fibres???? I can't help thinking that your mother was not wearing the right clothes. Sorry about your mom and hope she gets better soon.

Also good opportunity to remind everyone to wear the proper clothes when playing with fire. Your clubbing gear might look great but is usually highly flammable. Your cool pants won't look so good when they are melting on your skin. (hot spots have fell on trousers while smoking and they v. quickly melted a whole in my trousers - imagine a poi smacking and wrapping itself round your leg - nasty!!)

Take care everyone

Maybe she was wearing polyester

This past thursday i was spinning with someone who caught his pants on fire...he was wearing cotton dockers but the wicks were fresh so i imagine some of the gas from those fresh wicks was what caused the burning to happen so quickly...we noticed it immediately and put him out but still a big hole already burned almost completely through his pants...no flesh burn, luckily!

Hi, nyx was your friend using white gas? I’ve found that stuff is really dangerous because it burns hot, and sets anything it come into contact with alight.

Just a thought

Yes, Nyx uses whitegas because she does bad things. At least she wears a TShirt that clearly states it though.

We've beaten the whitegas issue to death here, but people keep on usin' it... At least mix it with lamp oil to tame it people!

starting to remind me of the dark shadows ball one of our staff spinners forgot to drain the wicks.. so his session went something like this...

Light ends
spin
set everyones equipment on fire while looking like a psychotic lawn sprinkler
3 people rush in to put out the fires
guy keeps spinning while i yelled something to the effect of "hey man, new trick? see how much of our equipment you can kill? what do you do for the encore?"

true that white gas can be a bad thing, but, when making sure our safety's are actually paying attention, i will sometimes smack myself on the leg with a fresh torch... nice burst of flames, decent burn time... but at the same time, i almost always wear leather jeans when practicing or performing.

all i can recommend for burns, other than going to a doctor, is what i do when i get one. Most of my worst burns have been sun related.. like the 3rd degree one i got when i decided to go for a 3 hour walk around 1pm with no shirt on.. the rest of them are usually from the wind shifting and end up on my hands (small torches, huge wicks)

cover it with aloe vera, let it soak in and more or less dry up, then, spread honey on it and loosely wrap it with gauze.. only reason i say gauze is, if it sticks to it, you can wet it down and it comes off way easy.

We were using three parts coleman camp fuel to one part parrafin lamp oil. We have learned a great lesson. No wearing cotton pants. As far as Jennifer went, our towel person, she got it out as quickly as possible. The fabric on moms pants vaporized, and had burned her already, by the time that any of us noticed. She's got a bandage on it, and we showed it to a friend of ours that is a nurse, so shes doing better. We are hoping that it will be healed by the wedding. Thanks for everything guys.
and

Ice cream. Ice cream solves everything.

[Shrugs] That wouldn't have happened with pure lamp oil. But I'll shut up. Also, cotton's not particularly flammable. If it was some synthetic ester you'd have been picking plastic out of her flesh for weeks.

I simply don't get why people use whitegas in most situations. (I'm shutting up, I'm shutting up...)

last peice of advice!

Wear thick cotton drill! Pure cotton, and as thick as possible
or! denim! again, avoid synthetics, but thick is good, because it wont melt, and it wont flame up quickly

Change your choice of fuel to be safer ` and perhaps, if you plan to perform alot... look into investing in some leather pants? it would be worthwhile

Goodluck to your Mom for the healing! xoxox

i have to agree with nyc... i ONLY use white gas for my blowing torches, and half the time i keep them going with oil after they are lit by spitting on them..

the only things i let any of my troupe use white gas on are.. blowing torches, fans, and finger torches... anything else is too dangerous in my book... i used to let my poi person use white gas, but, it didnt burn nearly as long as parafin.. main reason, wicks were made way too tight, at the same time, if the oil works on that tight of a wick, and is less dangerous *shrugs* its ok in my books

here's my main piece of advice...

Fuel: if spinning, use parafin... yeah, it may be a little harder to light, but you get a longer burn and a better flame (depending on the looseness of your wick)...

Clothing: wear some thick jeans, I have found that the cross-hatch and canvas jeans from 'Phat Farm', and the jnco "skunk 180" line (getting hard to find) are beautiful, you can set these babies on fire and have a starbucks doubleshot before you feel the burn... nice thick material.

Clothing #2: A good set of leathers is hard to beat when it comes to fire... I regulary set my jeans on fire, near my ankle (so the flame doesnt hit my shirt), and have had so much fun with it.. The leather's i usually use are made by "pelle studio", they aren't too thick, good motorcycle jeans, also have a pair of dress slacks in leather by them...

either way, play it safe, i can guarantee you that the majority of the crowd will not notice a difference between parafin and white gas when spinning.. the flame on average is the same, the main diff is parafin seems to burn longer at high spin rates and be a helluva lot safer...