Hot Water or Other Liquid Burn (Child)

Home care

Follow these guidelines when caring for your child at home.

The doctor may prescribe medicines for pain and infection. Follow the doctor’s instructions for giving these medicines to your child. It's important to give your child pain medicine before you change the bandage.

General care

• Follow the doctor’s instructions when you care for the wound and change the bandage.

• Don’t put medical ointment or grease on the burn. They will hold in heat, make the burn more painful, and raise the risk for infection.

• Don’t rub the burn.

• Encourage your child to drink plenty of liquids, such as water, fruit juice, and clear soups. This will help prevent dehydration.

• Keep your child from scratching and picking at the burn. Keep their fingernails trimmed short.

• You may give your child diphenhydramine if they have itching.

• Dress your child in loose-fitting clothing.

• Keep the wound out of the sun.

Prevention

• Be sure your child isn't underfoot when you cook or are drinking hot liquids.

• Don’t leave a child to cook unattended.

• Turn the water heater thermostat below 120°F (48.8°C).

Follow-up care

Follow up with your child’s doctor as advised.

Special note to parents

Health care providers are trained to see injuries like this in young children as a sign of possible abuse. Several providers may ask questions about how your child was injured. Providers are required by law to ask you these questions. This is done to protect the child. Please try to be patient and not take offense.

When to get medical care

Contact your child's doctor right away if your child has:

• A fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or higher, or as advised by your child's doctor.

• Pain that's not helped with pain medicine.

• No interest in eating or drinking.

• Too little pee.

• Dark or strong-smelling pee.

• Sunken eyes.

• Redness or swelling that gets worse.

• Bad-smelling fluid draining from the burn.

• A burn wound that doesn’t heal.