Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler

We report a case of accidental cutaneous burns caused by salbutamol metered dose inhaler. A 9-year-old boy underwent dental extraction at a children's hospital and was incidentally noted to have burn injuries on dorsum of both hands. On questioning, the boy revealed that a few days ago his 14-y...

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Main Authors: Ashutosh Kale, Fiona Shackley
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2010-01-01
Series:Case Reports in Medicine
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2010/201809
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author Ashutosh Kale
Fiona Shackley
author_facet Ashutosh Kale
Fiona Shackley
author_sort Ashutosh Kale
collection DOAJ
description We report a case of accidental cutaneous burns caused by salbutamol metered dose inhaler. A 9-year-old boy underwent dental extraction at a children's hospital and was incidentally noted to have burn injuries on dorsum of both hands. On questioning, the boy revealed that a few days ago his 14-year-old brother, who is an asthmatic, playfully sprayed his salbutamol metered dose inhaler on the back of both his hands with the inhaler's mouth piece being in direct contact with the patient's skin. On examination, there was a rectangular area of erythema with superficial peeling on the dorsum of both hands, the dimensions of which exactly matched those of the inhaler's mouthpiece. It is possible that the injury could have been a chemical burn from the pharmaceutical/preservative/propellant aerosol or due to the physical effect of severe cooling of the skin or mechanical abrasive effect of the aerosol blasts or a combination of some or all the above mechanisms. This case highlights the importance of informing children and parents of the potentially hazardous consequences of misusing a metered dose inhaler.
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spelling doaj-art-543ac1e380e843fc9f84e012a9b889ab2025-02-03T06:11:45ZengWileyCase Reports in Medicine1687-96271687-96352010-01-01201010.1155/2010/201809201809Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose InhalerAshutosh Kale0Fiona Shackley1Department of Pediatric Medicine, Sheffield Children's Hospital, Sheffield S10 2TH, UKDepartment of Pediatric Medicine, Sheffield Children's Hospital, Sheffield S10 2TH, UKWe report a case of accidental cutaneous burns caused by salbutamol metered dose inhaler. A 9-year-old boy underwent dental extraction at a children's hospital and was incidentally noted to have burn injuries on dorsum of both hands. On questioning, the boy revealed that a few days ago his 14-year-old brother, who is an asthmatic, playfully sprayed his salbutamol metered dose inhaler on the back of both his hands with the inhaler's mouth piece being in direct contact with the patient's skin. On examination, there was a rectangular area of erythema with superficial peeling on the dorsum of both hands, the dimensions of which exactly matched those of the inhaler's mouthpiece. It is possible that the injury could have been a chemical burn from the pharmaceutical/preservative/propellant aerosol or due to the physical effect of severe cooling of the skin or mechanical abrasive effect of the aerosol blasts or a combination of some or all the above mechanisms. This case highlights the importance of informing children and parents of the potentially hazardous consequences of misusing a metered dose inhaler.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2010/201809
spellingShingle Ashutosh Kale
Fiona Shackley
Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
Case Reports in Medicine
title Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
title_full Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
title_fullStr Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
title_full_unstemmed Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
title_short Accidental Cutaneous Burns Secondary to Salbutamol Metered Dose Inhaler
title_sort accidental cutaneous burns secondary to salbutamol metered dose inhaler
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2010/201809
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AT fionashackley accidentalcutaneousburnssecondarytosalbutamolmetereddoseinhaler