Here is somethin I didn't know and I have also been guilty of...

Here is somethin I didn't know and I have also been guilty of standing in wet cement myself and only recently, like about a month back!

http://www.resus.com.au/blog/cement-burns-shell-be-right-mate-maybe-not/

Cement Burns: “She’ll be right mate”. Maybe not.

Here is the case.

A 48 year old man presents with some redness and burns on his lower limbs. He was using cement one day previously, laying a concrete slab and standing in it, his denim pants soaked. He felt some mild discomfort at the time, but now that he has seen his legs, he is concerned.

What do you think of his legs?

When I saw them I was concerned that the grey coloured areas I was seeing were necrosed and were full thickness burns……and they were.

Cement contains lime, which is Calcium Oxide. When it is exposed to moisture, it gives off an exothermic reaction. The hydrated calcium oxide becomes calcium hydroxide and the hydroxyl ion is what causes the skin damage.

If not removed from the skin, it can result in deep, painless necrosis and full thickness burns.

The initial first aid, should be copious irrigation. The use of a buffered solution for first aid is controversial.

The ultimate management for this patient was excision and grafting of his burns.

What does this have to do with Calzada you ask, notice who one of the authors was?

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24270083

J Burn Care Res. 2014 Jan-Feb;35(1):80-3. doi: 10.1097/BCR.0b013e31829b21f3.
A ten-year retrospective analysis of cement burns in a tertiary burns center.
Alexander W1, Coghlan P, Greenwood J.
Author information
Abstract

Cement is extensively used both in the professional construction and "do-it-yourself" industries. Despite a number of small published series during the past 80 years highlighting its potential for harm, little seems to have been done to make consumers aware of its risks of causing serious burn injuries. The authors present 10 years of a tertiary adult burn center's experience with these burns, and highlight the significance of these burns on the active, working sector of society. Both professionals and part-time enthusiasts are affected, with burns of significant depth and subsequent impairment of normal functioning. The authors propose a better education system to highlight the risks and, in time, reduce the incidence of cement burns.

PMID:
24270083
[PubMed - in process]