 |
|
|
|
Home »
Contractures
Contractures
If the burn wound is allowed to heal without
intervention then the skin heals with contraction thus forming
contractures which can lead to serious deformity and disability if
overlying a joint or other vital areas of the body besides being
cosmetically very demoralising for the patient.
The initial management of a burn patient involves resuscitation of the patient for shock, taking care of the fluid balance and preventing infection. The long term management involves preventing the formation of contractures as any other subsequent deformity.
The initial management of a burn patient involves resuscitation of the patient for shock, taking care of the fluid balance and preventing infection. The long term management involves preventing the formation of contractures as any other subsequent deformity.
Earlier, the contractures were initially allowed
to form and treated with skin grafting at a later date. These days early
skin grafting can be done within the first week ( specially for face,
hand and joint surface burns ) if the patient is stable, which prevents
the formation of contractures. Skin grafting involves taking skin from
the healthy areas of the body ( usually the thigh area if it is not
involved ), meshing it and putting it on the wound. The donor area also
heals with new skin growth.