How do you treat burns on the bottom of your feet?

Answer 1

The best treatment is prevention. You should have well fitting boots, break them in with shorter walks and hikes before going on long hikes and wear good thick socks (sometimes more than one pair). You should regularly check your feet for red irritated areas (called "hot spots") and place moleskin over them before they form a blister.

A small, unbroken blister [less than 1 in. (2.5 cm) across], even a blood blister, will usually heal on its own. Do not try to break the blister. "The best bandage is intact skin". Just leave it alone and uncovered if you will not be continuing to put pressure on it (i.e. if you are done hiking).

If you will continue to rub it, i.e if you have more hiking to do, the best treatment is to apply a doughnut shaped piece of moleskin to it. If you do not have moleskin you can use a band-aid type of bandage. Do not wrap tape completely around a hand, arm, foot, or leg because it could cut off the blood supply if the limb swells.

Some people like to put a plastic bag in the boot to help the foot slide and reduce friction. This might work but my personal opinion is that it is not as comfortable and makes it so that the boot does not breath which makes your foot drenched with sweat and in many ways worse due to the skin getting macerated.

If the blister does break wash your hands and the affected area with soap and water as blisters can easily become infected.

If you have a large blister that is likely to pop open on its own you may want to drain it, depending on where it is, to reduce the size of the open wound. Clean a needle with rubbing alcohol or soap and water, then use it to gently puncture the edge of the blister. Press the fluid in the blister toward the hole you made. Wash the blister after you have drained it, and pat it dry with clean gauze. Do not remove the flap of skin covering the blister unless it tears or gets dirty or pus forms under it. If the blister has just a small puncture or break, leave the flap of skin on and gently smooth it flat over the tender skin underneath.

Apply an antibiotic ointment, such as polymixin B or bacitracin, if you are not allergic to it. The ointment will prevent the bandage from sticking to the blister and may help prevent infection. Do not use alcohol or iodine on the blister because these may delay healing (they are toxic to the skin as well as the bacteria). Loosely apply a bandage or gauze. Secure the bandage so the tape does not touch the blister. If the skin under the bandage begins to itch or develops a rash, stop using the antibiotic ointment.

Change the bandage every day and any time it gets wet or dirty. You can soak the bandage in cool water just before removing it to make it less painful to take off.

If possible, avoid wearing the shoes or doing the activity that caused the blister until the blister heals.

Answer 2

DO NOT WALK! keep off your feet and cool the burn in cold water. See a doctor.

Answer 3

It would be the same as any other spot on your body.