Your Child has Severe Frostbite Your child’s skin is damaged from being exposed to very cold temperatures for too long. Your child’s skin has frozen. There may also be damage to the tissues under the skin. Call 911 or your local ambulance service. Severe frostbite is a medical emergency. Severe frostbite may be second, third or fourth degree, depending on the depth of the tissue involved. How bad the frostbite damage is depends on: ●
what the outside temperature was
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how long your child was out in the cold
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the wind-chill factor at the time
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dampness in the air or on the ground
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how much and what type clothing your child had on
If the blood vessels beneath the skin are affected, gangrene may occur. Gangrene happens when tissue dies due to lack of blood supply. Once the tissue dies, it cannot be saved. Doctors may have to remove the dead tissue.
How to know it is severe frostbite Your child’s skin: ●
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at first, may have redness, tingling, burning and numbness may then become white, swollen, hard and waxy looking then becomes numb all over the area may form blisters and ulcers
In frostbite injuries of second-degree or higher, blisters appear. Thirddegree frostbite causes deep, blood-filled blisters and a hard black scab to form. Fourth-degree frostbite goes below the skin into the muscles, tendons, nerves and bones. Blood poisoning and infection may also occur. ©2006-13 P&H Assoc., Inc This handout is for information only and is not meant to replace your doctors advice or treatment.
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