Table 1-.

Visual Assessment of Burn Depth

Clinical Depth	Layer Affected	Visual Characteristics	Tactile Characteristics	Prognosis
Superficial (First Degree)	Epidermis only	Erythema, dry	Painful	Heals within a few days
Superficial Partial Thickness (Second Degree)	Epidermis and superficial dermis	Erythema, blisters, moist, weeping	Painful, blanchable with applied pressure	Heals within 3–15 days
Deep Partial Thickness (Second Degree)	Epidermis and deep dermis	Erythema or pale, +/− blisters, moist or dry	Painful or anesthetic, non-blanchable with applied pressure	May heal within 2–3 weeks
Indeterminate Depth Burn	Epidermis and deep dermis or full dermis	Erythema or pale, +/− blisters, moist or dry	Painful or anesthetic, non-blanchable with applied pressure	Healing time unknown but likely longer than 2–3 weeks
Full Thickness (Third Degree)	Complete epidermis and dermis destruction into subcutaneous layer.	Dry, leathery, white/brown/black in color	Non-painful, non-blanchable with applied pressure	Healing slowly from edges only, requires autograft for normal orderly healing