Finger Burn

[robbins_missy]

Hi my name is Melissa, I am 21 years old, 5'8", and 180lbs. At a family get together on the 18th. I was burned by a bottle rocket on my left hand. The index finger is the worst, being numb during most of the day. The middle finger, ring finger and thumb also have burns. All fingers are dexterous, I can feel pressure when applied and nerves seem ok. The index finger is burned on the area near the nail bed including the nail itself, the burn is isolated to the right side of the nail and finger. My question being what will a Doctor do to ease my pain and help the healing process? I am worried being a college student with no medical coverage, that they will simply ask me to keep the wound clean, and give me pain medication, things I can do myself without accruing debt. I have been cleaning the wound of dead skin and flushing it out, as well as applying burn gel and treating with hydrogen peroxide. There is no puss or swelling besides the clear fluid from the blisters that have all but flattened now. The pain gets better everyday, but there are still occasional bouts of greater pain. At the worst on a scale of ten the burn feels about a 6. I clean the wound 2-3 times a day and keep it covered with gauze. Additionally I would like to mention that everyday I have been soaking the hand in salt water, painful, but when I apply the peroxide it bubble very little, I take that to be a sign of cleanliness of the wound.

[Bhupinder Kaur, MD]

Hello,
Apart from the topical antibiotic you need oral antibiotics and non steroidal anti-inflammatory pain killers also like Ibuprofen for the pain associated with the burns. Please get them prescribed from your doctor.

It is very difficult to precisely confirm a diagnosis without examination and investigations and the answer is based on the medical information provided. For exact diagnosis, you are requested to consult your doctor. I sincerely hope that helps. Take care and please do keep me posted on how you are doing.

[robbins_missy]

I ended up going to the Emergency Room. I received a little blue jar or Silver Sulfadiazine, a prescription for a low milligram of viacodin. At the ER the Physicians assistant informed me that the ER didn't know a lot about burn treatment, and suggested I make a secondary visit to the burn center. I however couldn't not afford the care costs so I have been maintaining the regime above described. The pain at time is unbearable, but most of the day it is more than manageable. I am curious tho as to why the hand hurts so intensely at night, and after dinner? Is it because I am healing the most during those hours, or because of fluxuation in blood pressure?