SUNFLOWER OIL IN THE TREATMENT OF HOT TAR BURNS

Hot tar burns compose a unique class of thermal injury, because remova l of this highly sticky compound may be very difficult without inflict ing additional tissue damage. Early removal of tar facilitates assessm ent of the burn and improves patient comfort. Although the use of many substances for the painless removal of tar has been described, we use d sunflower oil effectively in the treatment of four tar burn patients . This first report describes the practical and successful use of sunf lower oil which was easily obtained from the hospital kitchen. (C) 199 7 Elsevier Science Ltd for ISBI. All rights reserved.