Tar burns in the southwest.

The burns which result from contact of human skin with hot tar may be quite serious in proportion to the body surface area involved. Although tending toward partial thickness burns, patchy areas of full thickness skin loss are commonly observed. The use of petrolatum-based ointments on the burn initially to dissolve the tar into the dressings seems like the most efficient and humane method of tar removal. Subsequently, care of the wound is like that of any other burn. Tar burns involving greater than 10 per cent of the body surface area are likely to be the most serious and require intravenous fluid resuscitation. Many tar burns appear to be preventable.