How to Deal With Alkali Burns

Working with chemicals is hazardous and can cause injury. One class of chemicals that causes injury to the body is alkali compounds. When the solution encounters your skin, chemical reactions begin to occur. The alkali causes burns. Among the types of reactions that happen are the neutralization of acids contained in the skin, which generates heat, the denaturing of proteins that make up the skin and drying of the skin tissue. The most important mechanism for dealing with alkali burns is to eliminate contact with the chemical and wash the exposed skin with lots of water to dilute the alkali.

Things You'll Need

• Soft bristled brush
• Water
• Thermometer

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Instructions

• 1

  Brush off any remaining powder from your skin. If your skin comes into contact with alkali in solid form, immediately brush as much of the alkali off your skin as quickly as possible using a soft bristle brush. Avoid adding water before you have removed the solid because when alkali dissolve in water they generate heat, which will further damage the skin. If your skin comes in contact with an alkali solution, continue with the next step.

• 2

  Wash the point of contact with an abundance of water. Use a continuous flow of fresh water to both dilute the alkali and to reduce any heat that the alkali generates when it dissolves in the water or in bodily fluids. In concentrated form, the alkali is able to penetrate the skin to a greater degree, so continued flushing with excess water will dilute the alkali that is deeper in the wound. Wash with copious amounts of water at this point for burns caused by both solids and liquids.

• 3

  Assess the depth of the damage of the burn. Careful examination of the affected area of the skin should reveal how extensive the burn is. The corrosive alkali will cause the skin to blacken and turn to a dry, hard crust or scab. The severity of the burn depends on the concentration of the alkali, the length of exposure and the amount of alkali.

• 4

  Monitor the body temperature of the person with a burn using a thermometer. A rise in body temperature in a rapid manner can indicate shock and emergency medical help is necessary. The exposure of large portions of the body to the alkali increases the potential for shock. The Mayo Clinic advises you to seek emergency medical assistance of the area exposed is larger than 3 inches in diameter.

• 5

  Treat pain from the burn with over-the-counter pain relievers. If over these pain relievers do not address the pain sufficiently, seek medical attention.