2. In first-degree burns only the epidermis is damaged. They can cause redness, swelling and pain in the infected area. First-degree burns heal in two to three days. In second-degree burns the epidermis and upper region of the dermis is damaged. The symptoms of the first-degree burns occur, but blisters also appear. The burned area is red and painful. These burns heal within three to four weeks, and long-term scarring does not occur. In third-degree burns the entire thickness of the skin (epidermis, dermis, and often the subcutaneous layer) is damaged. The burned area is gray-white, cherry red, or black. Also, there is no pain because the nerve endings are destroyed. 3. Angela was relatively pain-free when she woke up because the burned areas of Angela’s body may feel numb because of the loss of the dermal nerve endings. She may have pain in margins of her third-degree burns in areas of second-degree burn where it still have nerve endings. 4. Angela’s blood pressure was so low and heart rate so high upon arrival at the emergency room because she suffered from third-degree burns over 15% of her body. 5. It is important to immediately administer intravenous fluids to Angela to replace the fluid lost from her bloodstream. 6. A broad-spectrum antibiotic is a medication given to treat infections from wide variety of bacteria. She needs it because her third-degree burns put her at risk for infection because she has no protective covering against bacterial invasion. Yes, because healthy skin is normally colonized by bacteria. 7. The skin-grafting was necessary with Angela because she suffered from third-degree burns which takes weeks to months to heal. The healing process is slow, Angela would die to complications of the burn if the skin grafting was not development, which help speed up the healing process. 8. …show more content…
In third-degree burns, the skin must be removed first and the area is flooded with topical antibiotics. Then the burned area is temporarily covered with a synthetic membrane, animal (pig) skin, cadaver skin, or “living bandage” made from the thin amniotic sac membrane that surrounds a fetus. The temporary covering is removed and replaced by skin harvested from somewhere on the patient’s body or by a synthesis skin graft. In the synthesis skin graft placement, a silicone “epidermis” bound to a spongy “dermal” layer composed of collagen and cartilage is applied to the debrided area. Over time, the patient’s own dermal tissue absorbs and replaces the artificial one. The silicone sheet is peeled off and replaces with a network of epidermal cells cultured from the patient’s own