Preventing, treating cooking burns around the holidays
Uncontrollable pain, pale white skin among reasons to seek emergency care, says UCI Health expert
IN THE NEWS: Around the holidays, the kitchen becomes a busy center of activity. It’s also the location of a number of accidents that cause burns every year.
UCI Health trauma surgeon Dr. Syed F. Saquib, who is the director of the UCI Health Regional Burn Center, recently partnered with Anaheim Fire & Rescue to demonstrate how to safely cook a turkey in a fryer in an effort to educate the community about the risk of burns and fire that they pose.
Saquib spoke with KNX News about what to do if a burn should occur while you’re whipping up a holiday feast.
“If you start to see that your skin is blistering or skin is peeling off, that's a reason to seek medical attention. If the burn that you sustain looks pale white or has a thick and leathery texture, that may be concerning for a third-degree burn and requires medical attention sooner rather than later. If you have uncontrollable pain ― because burns can hurt ― that is a reason to seek medical attention sooner rather than later.”
Saquib is also an associate professor in the Department of Surgery at UC Irvine School of Medicine.