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Medical Author:

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Charles Patrick Davis, MD, PhD

Dr. Charles "Pat" Davis, MD, PhD, is a board certified Emergency Medicine doctor who currently practices as a consultant and staff member for hospitals. He has a PhD in Microbiology (UT at Austin), and the MD (Univ. Texas Medical Branch, Galveston). He is a Clinical Professor (retired) in the Division of Emergency Medicine, UT Health Science Center at San Antonio, and has been the Chief of Emergency Medicine at UT Medical Branch and at UTHSCSA with over 250 publications.

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Medical Editor:

Jerry R. Balentine, DO, FACEP

Jerry R. Balentine, DO, FACEP

Dr. Balentine received his undergraduate degree from McDaniel College in Westminster, Maryland. He attended medical school at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine graduating in1983. He completed his internship at St. Joseph's Hospital in Philadelphia and his Emergency Medicine residency at Lincoln Medical and Mental Health Center in the Bronx, where he served as chief resident.

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All chemical burns should be considered potential medical emergencies.

Most chemical burns occur on the face, eyes, hands, arms, and legs. Usually a chemical burn will be relatively small and will require only outpatient treatment. Chemical burns can be deceiving, however. Some agents can cause deep tissue damage that is not not readily apparent when people first look at it.

• Tissue damage from chemical burns depends on several factors.
  • The strength or concentration of the agent
  • The site of contact (eye, skin, mucous membrane)
  • Whether swallowed or inhaled
  • Whether or not skin is intact
  • With the quantity of the chemical
  • The duration of exposure
  • How the chemical works
  • The length of time to washing (decontamination)
  
  
• Signs and symptoms of chemical burns include the following:
  • Redness, irritation, or burning at the site of contact
  • Pain or numbness at the site of contact
  • Formation of blisters or black dead skin at the contact site
  • Vision changes if the chemical gets into the eyes
  • Cough or shortness of breath
  • Vomiting
  
  
• In severe cases, a person may develop any of the following symptoms:
  • Low blood pressure
  • Faintness, weakness, dizziness
  • Shortness of breath or severe cough
  • Headache
  • Muscle twitching or seizures
  • Cardiac arrest or irregular heartbeat
  
  

Chemical burns can be very unpredictable. Death from a chemical injury, although rare, can occur.

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See the Entire Chemical Burns Topic Guide »