Turf burn is a common injury among people who play sports--especially football players. A turf burn is caused by friction which generates heat and removes layers of skin, leaving a painful and unsightly "raspberry" abrasion. Proper treatment of turf burn is essential to speedy healing, preventing infection and reducing the potential for scarring.
Step 1
Apply pressure with sterile gauze to stop any initial bleeding. Bleeding from most turf burns generally will stop within a few minutes of pressure, although weeping of clear fluids may continue after bleeding has ceased.
Step 2
Clean the turf burn abrasion with a saline solution, gently rinsing it to sterilize the wound as well as remove any particles that may be in the damaged tissue. "Football Times" recommends adding 1/4 teaspoon of a non-iodized salt such as sea salt or kosher salt to clean water to make a saline solution, since chemicals such as peroxide, iodine and alcohol can cause unnecessary pain and destroy wounded skin tissue.
Step 3
Apply a hydrogel liberally to the surface of the turf burn. A hydrogel will keep the abrasion moist when it is dressed--a key element of proper healing for turf burns. According to the "Journal of Athletic Training," moist wound dressings shorten the amount of healing time, help prevent infection and reduce pain with abrasions such as turf burns.
Step 4
Cover the turf burn with an occlusive dressing, which will seal in a moist environment in which the abrasion can heal. Occlusive dressings are available at pharmacies, and range from adhesive films to waterproof bandages--anything that will close off the turf burn from air and keep it moist to prevent scabbing and scarring.
Step 5
Change the dressing after a day or two to ensure that the turf burn is still moist and shows no signs of infection, such as excessive redness or foul odor. Apply more hydrogel and use a fresh occlusive dressing when bandaging the turf burn again. Most turf burns will heal within a week in a moist dressing, so if you see that the abrasion is covered with healthy, new skin--pink in color--you can remove the dressing from your healed turf burn.
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