Hiss! Burned by the hot pack again? We did an experiment to reveal the truth about the burns caused by the hot pack!

Every winter, we always see a lot of news about people being "burned" by heat packs. Today, a celebrity wore 70 heat packs to keep warm while walking on the red carpet, which made people worry about the risk of burns...

In addition to burns caused by hot packs, there have been many new cases of burns caused by black technology in recent years: heating scarves, heating table mats, and even mobile phones.

These burns all have a common characteristic - low-temperature burns. Simply put, they are burns caused at a relatively low (comfortable) temperature.

Many people are confused. They have only heard of high temperature burns, but can low temperature also burn people? Don't worry, we used the most common warm baby to do an experiment to restore the truth.

Warm baby

How exactly does it burn people?

We prepared a piece of raw meat, and then covered the meat with a towel with a hot pack attached to it to simulate the scene of warming the stomach with the hot pack.

Monitor the temperature of the surface of the hot pack and check the condition of the meat every half hour.

The results showed that: after 2 hours, the meat turned noticeably white (the surface was cooked)!

Figure | Made by myself

At this time, the hand warmer feels warm and cozy. The measured surface temperature is maintained at about 50 degrees.

But even such a comfortable temperature can really burn people if it lasts for a long time!

Figure | Made by myself

Most people think of burns as temperatures above 70 degrees, and it takes 1 to 2 seconds to react because - it hurts!

Low-temperature burns are different. They don't hurt, but feel warm and comfortable. But if the burn lasts long enough, it may "cook" parts of the body.

How comfortable is it? 44 degrees Celsius can cause it, which is about the level of scalding bath water in winter.

Low temperature burn = a comfortable temperature above 44 degrees ✖️ for a certain period of time

Figure | References Summary

The product description of the hot pack we mentioned earlier reminds you that the average temperature is above 50 degrees, and the highest temperature can even reach 63 degrees.

Figure | Product description of a certain warm baby

We continued to measure the heating condition of this warm baby, and the measured data basically met the product label, with the highest temperature reaching 64°C. What's more frightening is that it can maintain above 44°C for more than 5 hours.

Figure | Made by myself

Just imagine that if your calves, stomach, back... are under this warm pack and you take a nap or fall into a deep sleep and forget about its existence, then your skin will be burned without you realizing it.

Also, because there is no obvious pain, the burns may be serious by the time they are discovered.

Low temperature burns are burns, not just on the surface of the skin, but can even go deep into the subcutaneous tissue, reaching the level of Grade III burns. Not only will scars be left, but there is also a risk of infection, so you need to see a doctor as soon as possible, and the treatment time starts at 2 months.

This is why we want to remind everyone again and again: low-temperature burns are too easy to be underestimated!

The warmer is too close to the body

More likely to burn

In addition to prolonged contact, there is another key point that is easily overlooked in low-temperature burns: the distance between the heat source and the body.

When using a hot pack, if your clothes are loose and your body is making various movements, the heat source is actually at a certain distance from your skin, and the actual contact temperature is not as high as measured.

However, if the hot pack is attached directly to the body, or the clothing is too tight, causing it to be too close to the skin, the temperature close to the skin will be higher, and burns will occur faster and more seriously.

We used another small experiment to restore this process: wrap the meat, towel, and heat pack in order, and then tie a rubber band to simulate a tight belt or wearing tight clothes. The results showed that:

After 1 hour, the meat will start to cook.

Figure | Made by myself

Let’s take a look at the comparison between these two pieces of meat:

Although it was heated for only one hour, the meat on the right side has more wrinkles and feels harder. If it were restored to our body, it would mean that the burn would be more serious.

Figure | Made by myself

Similar situations are actually very common in life, such as sticking a heat pack near the waist of pants, putting the heat pack directly on the skin, or wearing a very thick and tight coat on the outside... These are all blood and tearful stories of low-temperature burns caused by being too close to the heat source.

3 Tips

Help you avoid low temperature burns

So does this mean that heat-generating products like hot packs cannot be used?

For people who are afraid of cold, heating equipment is the light that saves people in winter. From the principle of low-temperature burns, we know that these 3 tips can help us avoid most risks:

1

Identify risky heat sources

In addition to the most common warm baby, there are also a variety of heating devices that need to be vigilant! For example, heating table mats, heating massagers, heating sanitary napkins, moxibustion, etc. can also reach a temperature that can cause low-temperature burns.

We tested the surface temperatures of common heating equipment:

A hot water bottle that has just been filled with water can reach 83.4 degrees;

The surface of the heated eye mask can reach 48.7 degrees;

Electric blankets can reach 43.3 degrees.

Figure | Made by myself

In addition, we should also pay attention to the heat sources that are easily overlooked by us: mobile phones, computer screens, and our favorite foot soak in winter.

2

Pay attention to the length of use, don't use it for too long

Do not soak your feet for more than 30 minutes, especially in some constant temperature barrels.

Do not use a heat pad or hot water bottle in the same place for more than 2 hours.

Don’t use it when you sleep (don’t forget to use it when you take a nap). If you are afraid of cold, you can preheat it before going to bed. When you are ready to fall asleep, turn off the power or kick off the heat source before going to bed.

3

Don't be too tight, don't be too close!!

Do not place any heating device directly against the skin, especially around the waist, and make sure your pants are not too tight (belts, elastic bands, etc.).

Finally, we would like to remind you that low-temperature burns are particularly likely to occur in some special groups, such as children with more delicate skin, the elderly who are less sensitive to temperature, and diabetic patients. Please try to avoid using it.

References

[1]John P Abraham,et al.Estimating the time and temperature relationship for causation of deep-partial thickness skin burns.burns.2015 Dec;41(8):1741-1747. doi: 10.1016/j.burns.2015.06.002. Epub 2015 Jul 16.

[2]Burn Center Care - General data about burns

[3]INJURY, FATAL AND NONFATAL | Burns and Scalds - ScienceDirect

[4] Tips: Burns - Merck Manuals Popular Edition

Planning and production

Source丨This article is authorized to be reproduced from DingXiang Doctor (ID: DingXiangYiSheng) and may not be reproduced again without authorization.

Author | Tang Jiaoqing, attending physician of dermatology department

Editor: Yinuo