• Celalettin Sever, Yalcin Kulahcı, Ali Acar, and Ercan Karabacak.
• Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery and Burn Unit, Gülhane Military Medical Academy, Haydarpaşa Training Hospital, İstanbul, Turkey. drcsever@hotmail.com
• Ulus Travma Acil Cer. 2010 Sep 1; 16 (5): 433-8.

BackgroundThe refrigerant liquids and gases used widely in industry, farming and medicine for their cooling properties may cause severe frostbite. Despite their widespread use, only a few reports on frostbite of the hand involving these liquids and gases have been published. In this study, the circumstances accompanying these injuries, several adjunctive therapies and preventive measures are discussed.MethodsA retrospective analysis of hand frostbite injuries was conducted between June 2005 to June 2009 in a burn care center in Istanbul, Turkey. Seventeen patients (13 men, 4 women) were treated for hand frostbite injuries due to contact with refrigerant liquids and gases.ResultsThere was a preponderance of male patients (76.5%). Ages ranged from 22 to 52 years (mean age, 30.82 years). Eleven patients were treated conservatively. The hospital stay for treatment of their burns ranged from 16 to 52 days, with a mean stay of 30 days.ConclusionFrostbite injuries of the hand are uncommon and their etiologies vary. Thus, the low incidence of these injuries and limited experience in handling rare cases of this nature may lead to misjudgments in treatment that can have grave consequences. Decreasing the exposure time is an important first step in the treatment approach. After exposure to gas, quick delivery of the patient to a burn center is essential.

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